Energy News

Bognor Regis could become the UK's solar power capital

Friday 24 June, 2011

By Martin Fagan - news@consumerchoices.co.uk

West Sussex town is sunniest in UK as E.ON offers solar panel installation for £99.

Bognor Regis has the potential to become the solar power capital of the UK, according to “big six” energy company, E.ON.

The UK is a far sunnier place than people might think, according to Met Office figures from recent years.

And the West Sussex town of Bognor Regis is apparently one of the UK's sunniest places to live, with an average of 1,902 hours of sunshine every year.

Devon is the next sunniest county, with 1,710 hours of sunshine every year, followed by Suffolk (1,635), Cornwall (1,586) and then Lancashire and Northumbria (1,540 each), both of which have reputations for being rain-lashed and gloomy.

E.ON said that, while the sun's rays in the UK aren't as strong as more obvious hotspots around the world, they still have as much as 60% of the strength of those at the Equator. And, because energy can be harnessed even on cloudy and overcast days, it makes UK roofs ideal for solar panels.

"On an average day in the UK, a house fitted with solar panels can generate the same amount of energy as it takes to make 166 cups of tea, cook 39 jacket potatoes in a microwave, or run the vacuum cleaner for nearly three and a half hours,” said Claire Cutler from E.ON's microgeneration team.

“This just goes to show that if you're in Bognor, Sheffield or Durham then solar power can do a job for you.”

E.ON has recently launched its SolarExchange product, fitting solar panels to up to 15,000 customer homes for as little as £99.

Under such “rent-a-roof” schemes, E.ON installs and maintains the solar panels, with the costs covered through the government’s Feed-in Tariff (FIT) scheme and subsidy payments for renewable energy. In return, homeowners benefit from savings on the electricity generated.