A solar solution for the manufacturing industry

Origin Energy’s Solar as a Service allows companies to enjoy the benefits of low-cost solar energy without having to make a capital investment in a solar system. The service is suitable for businesses within the manufacturing industry that have been prevented from installing a large enough system to meet their energy needs due to high costs.

As explained by Phil Mackey, general manager, Solar and Emerging Business at Origin, “Solar as a Service provides business with a simple way to save money on their energy bills by providing them with access to low-cost solar energy at a lower price than they are presently paying for their grid energy.

“Plus, the business does not have to pay for the system or worry about ongoing maintenance, as Origin owns the system and looks after all this,” continued Mackey. “This option is ideal for companies with unshaded roof space who plan to be in their premises for the long term and operate during the day.”

Under Solar as a Service, businesses can keep the same solar electricity rate for up to 15 years, protecting them against any possible future electricity price hikes, or they can choose a CPI-indexed rate. The amount that each business can save will depend on its daytime energy needs, roof space, the size of the system installed, the length of the agreement and what happens more generally with retail electricity rates.

The service has already been taken up by Richard Parker, general manager of Townsville Engineering, whose premises covers over 5000 m² and services local government operations, mining companies and bulk-handling facilities, operating for almost 10 hours a day.

Parker had been considering going solar since 2014, but never pursued it until Origin launched Solar as a Service. The initiative has now enabled Parker to install an 80 kW solar system on his roof without any capital investment in the system. Furthermore, the system is generating a third of the business’s energy needs at a rate much lower than what the business is paying for electricity from the grid.

“The whole process has been really easy since Origin came back to us with this new option,” said Parker. “We’re excited to see the new electricity savings but are also glad that we can find a way to be environmentally conscious.”

“The service is something that adds great benefit to not only a company’s cash flow but also to their green credentials too,” said Mackey. “And, at the end of the day, it gives companies a solution for some of their biggest and ongoing considerations.”

Image credit: ©iStockphoto.com/Alex Slobodkin