Abundance Collaborates With Solarcentury To Offer Direct Investment Opportunities
Solarcentury and Abundance are working together to enable businesses to benefit from cheaper solar energy.
Solarcentury is now building and owning commercial and industrial solar rooftop projects allowing businesses to benefit from cheap solar electricity with no capital outlay. And Abundance is enabling businesses to offer their stakeholders and the general public the opportunity to invest directly into the rooftop solar projects.
Offering direct investment is an effective way for businesses to communicate their commitment to pursuing sustainability. Businesses can be confident that this will appeal to many people in the UK since solar is consistently the most popular form of renewable energy among the UK public, according to DECC figures. Further, by enabling stakeholders to access the opportunity to invest directly, businesses can also spread a "˜feel good' factor in relation to the environmentally positive nature of the investment.
Frans van den Heuvel, CEO of Solarcentury commented, "With 27 billion sq feet of south-facing commercial roof space available in the UK, there is a huge opportunity for businesses to make money by leasing their unused roof space to Solarcentury and buying the cheaper solar electricity generated by the solar installation. Taking control of energy costs is becoming a significant concern for businesses, especially high energy users worried about how rising energy prices will affect their competitiveness. Now, through Abundance, businesses can also "˜share the wealth' by giving employees, customers and people in their local communities the opportunity to invest in the solar projects."
By installing rooftop solar and having a PPA agreement in place, businesses can slash their electricity costs by purchasing cheaper solar electricity for a fixed price over 20 years, reducing reliance on fossil energy. A recent report by JLL identified the rising cost of energy as a key factor encouraging landlords and tenants to install solar. DECC figures show that businesses in the UK face a projected 60 per cent increase in the industrial price of electricity in real terms by 2024.
Louise Wilson, co-founder and joint Managing Director of Abundance said, "Using solar electricity is a great way for businesses to offset their energy bills, since solar electricity is cheaper than grid electricity. In addition, businesses can offer their stakeholders and customers the opportunity to generate a long term income and ultimately, do their bit in helping to create a more sustainable environment for future generations. We know this will be an attractive offer because our research shows that 62% of people in Britain want to choose exactly where their money is going to get a return and 57% want to invest in things that give a decent return but don't harm the planet."
Using solar power on commercial and industrial buildings offers a very cost effective and efficient way of delivering power to site, which is beneficial for both the system owner as well as the energy consumer. Solar power is locally generated and so avoids transmission losses of up to 12%.
Businesses with SSAS pension schemes can choose to invest directly via Abundance, since the profile of the investment matches the investment returns necessitated by pension schemes; it is low risk, long term and offers a decent return.
