A Scottish farmer has reduced his business electricity costs by installing solar panels on the roof of one of his poultry sheds.

Mr Ogg rears chickens and has invested in renewable energy to help reduce his business electricity costs and improve energy efficiency.

The farm, in Angus in the east of Scotland, has seven sheds of chickens and now has the addition of a 44.1kWP solar array on one of those sheds. The reduction in Feed-In Tariffs has not affected Mr Ogg because he uses all of the electricity generated on the farm and as such has significantly reduced his business electricity bill.

Mr Ogg said “We use our solar array to power our ventilation systems and for moving feed. Our demand peaks during the hottest time of the day, and hottest months of the year, which is when our 44.41kWp solar PV system is producing the most power. We use all the power that we generate, so our energy savings are considerable. The Feed-In Tariff will be reduced, so it’s not about generating income. For us it’s about boosting our efficiency and reducing costs”.

The panels have proved to be such a success that Mr Ogg says they are in the process of installing another 25kWP array on his pig unit.

One reason that Feed-In Tariffs have fallen is because installation costs and the cost of panels themselves have dropped, making it cheaper to consider solar as an option. This is really the whole idea of Feed-In Tariffs – to provide a subsidy until the costs of renewable energy fall.

Mr Ogg’s system was installed by Solar Technology. Managing director of the firm, Tom Morley, said “As installation costs have fallen, over its lifetime a solar PV system would pay for itself, regardless of any Feed-in Tariff. Installing a PV system fixes a proportion of your electricity cost, so helping insulate you against rising energy prices for the next 25 years. And of course, it will reduce the farm’s carbon footprint”.