A solar boom in Scotland

07 January 2022
 

Not many countries have taken to solar quite like Scotland has. With an ambitious target for cutting 80% of carbon emissions by 2050, Scotland has discovered the huge potential of renewable energy and are running with it! Although solar power accounts for a small fraction of the total green energy in Scotland, solar is growing fast.

In 2019, more than 56,000 households across Scotland had solar PV systems, helping to mitigate climate change. With the installed solar power capacity expected to reach a whopping 1.5G by 2030, Scotland is racing-ahead in reducing carbon emissions in order to meet their 2050 target.

We should note; sunlight is not an abolute requirement for solar panels, the photovoltaic cells can still function without direct sunlight and will produce electricity even on a cloudy day because it is the daylight that is essential. Therefore, despite Scotland's latitude, solar panels work perfectly well and are highly efficient in Scotland. 

In 2018 a summer heatwave broke Scottish power records in multiple places, with solar panels providing Aberdeen with 136% of its average household electricity demand and Lerwick with 117%. A recent study by WWF Scotland also found that since 2017, homes with solar panels have generated more than 100% of typical household electricity needs in seven different cities including Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee.

Although solar panels have no moving parts (meaning far less maintenance) they still require a regular check-over, along with a regular clean by a professional solar panel cleaner. This helps to ensure they are working to there full capacity for the lifetime of the investment. Clean panels really does mean more money!

The energy saving trust estimates that a standard 3kWp solar PV system in Scotland generates about 2,300 kWh of electricity each year, this amounts to approximately 75% of a typical household's electricity useage. If the panels have not been cleaned regularly, the amount of electricity generated will reduce.

With government grants no longer up for grabs, the Scottish government has made avilable an interest-free loan (Home Energy Scotland Loan) The scheme is available to households wanting to make 'energy improvements' to their household, which includes solar panels. Even though the feed-in tariff is no longer avilable for new contracts, The Smart Export Guarantee is and requires all large Uk energy providers to pay homeowners for any renewable electricity they export to the National Grid.