SunWorks partnered up with Acorn Enterprises last year, helping them towards their mission to become a sustainable social enterprise. Acorn are already pioneers with their reuse and upcycling facilities, not to mention investing in the community by providing work and training opportunities for people who have a disability or long-term health condition.
SunWorks have assisted Acorn reduce their environmental footprint by installing Solar Photovoltaic (PV) panels on their café building in December 2021. For the first six months of 2022, 48% of the facility’s total energy consumed came from solar, and it’s worth noting that the solar was powered up in the winter.
We predict that Acorn are on course to generate more than 55% of their total electricity consumption by the end of the year, which is incredible for a business with such a heavy demand for power. This includes the café, charity store, plant nursery, Woodshack and outbuildings.
Of the solar electricity generated, 28% is exported back to Jersey Electricity for redistribution to nearby properties. This means that they have saved approximately 9,200 kilograms of CO2 emissions since December.
Acorn’s General Manager, Steve Pearce said, “We are delighted with the results from our solar panels and we are considering installing more. We are particularly grateful to the Roy Overland Charitable Trust for funding, and recognising the potential of these solar panels, which help us towards being carbon neutral.”
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