Those that have read my blog before will know i am big fan of green energy, and some 18 months ago i stumbled upon Ripple Energy. Ripple is an energy company with a difference giving their customers the opportunity to actually own a share in a green energy production facility, at the time when I joined the were just starting the Derril Water Solar Farm, and i was eager to get involved, now as you can imagine the time from actually investing (whilst the farm is still at the planning stage) to the solar farm being built is not and overnight thing, but i war really happy this week to get an update from Rodrigo (the Derril Water Project Manager) and to actually see the solar panels finally being fitted to their frames and the cables being dug into the ground to start connecting everything up.
Its fantastic to see such a development coming to fruition and all based on small investors like you and me, if you have not come across Ripple Energy before then please click the link below and take a look, and if you do choose to invest in a little bit of renewable energy for yourself and your family then we both get 25 quid…
Click Here fore Ripple Energy.
It was quite interesting to see that the BBC did ran an article on the Derril Water Solar Farm back in October, but as seems to be usual it focused on the local opposition, and not the benefits it would bring, you can read the full article here. Unfortunately they didn’t mention that the Derril Water co-op will create a Community Benefit Fund. This will provide £1,000/MW annually – up to about £42,000, but thats the BBC for you.
As far as i know the current timeline should see Derril Water start producing electricity by the end of the year, personally i find it all quite exciting to be involved in such a project even in a small way, I am also watching Ripple Energies Whitelaw Brae Wind Farm with anticipation but that is not due to start producing power until 2026, with wind turbines taking much longer to build than solar farms.
A Little on Home Solar and Recycling Solar Panels
If you are into home solar systems etc then you may have already come across Artisan Electrics, they are one of the good guys they are general electricians but have also put together some really good home solar solutions, including the one they are installing in the video below. But what is actually more interesting then the home solar and battery install they are undertaking is what they chose to do with the solar panels they old / redundant they removed, its worth a look.
I absolutely loved the idea that they could containerise the panels and send them half way round the world, and that a few second hand panels which would probably normally go to landfill, would make such a difference to so many lives, hats off to the boys at Artisan Electrics, full credit to them for getting involved in such a worthy cause instead of just skipping them.
BTW: If you are looking into to getting solar panels or battery storage installed its worth watching some of their videos as you can gain a huge amount of knowledge just from watching their installs.
