Solar panels would cut carbon footprint of Moores
DOZENS of solar panels could soon be helping cut a Town hotel’s carbon footprint by 11,000kg a year – and with it its electricity bill.
Moore’s Hotel has applied to install 53 panels on the western side of its roof.
‘We have always been quite keen on alternative energy and we have had solar panel for years at Hotel de Havelet to help heat the swimming pool, but technology has been improving,’ said Sarnia Hotels managing director Karel Harris.
‘We have done all we can to reduce our energy usage as much as we can, so now we are looking at the opportunity to produce a bit of our own.’
The 49-bedroom hotel has three restaurants.
Mrs Harris said while their heating and hot water were powered by oil, all the rest of their power usage came from electricity.
That includes having to run items such as the lift and the hot tub.
It is estimated that about 5% of the hotel’s electricity requirement would be generated by the panels.
The initial cost would be about £26,000. The panels would pay for themselves within 12 years and have a life of between 20 and 25 years.
While the photovoltaic cells would produce less power in the winter, they would still produce some because the panels require light rather than heat.
Part of the hotel is listed, so the position of the panels has been planned carefully.
Mrs Harris said they would all be on the western part of the roof and would be visible only from tall buildings further up the hill.
‘They would be invisible from the front,’ she said.
If planning permission is granted, it is hoped that the panels would be installed early next year.
n The plans can be viewed at Sir Charles Frossard House.
