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Some 342 solar panels are to be fitted on the roof of Scottish Water's main Water Treatment Works (WTW) in a £120,000 scheme, delivered by Scottish Water Horizons, that aims to help the environment and lower energy bills.
Scottish Water's main Water Treatment Works (WTW) serves communities around the Cromarty Firth. The site is located just outside Evanton and provides drinking water from Loch Glass to around 30,000 customers across Easter Ross, Dingwall and the Black Isle.
The £120,000 investment is the latest solar power scheme delivered by Scottish Water Horizons, the utility's stand-alone commercial arm that works to encourage growth and invest in renewable technologies.
The panels are expected to offset 12% of the Water Treatment Works' total electricity consumption, both reducing impact on the environment and lowering energy bills.
Business Development Team Leader John Sammon, said: "The successful completion of this project represents another important step in Scottish Water's renewable energy story. It means that our customers in Ross-shire can enjoy their water with lower impact on the environment than ever before.
"The energy needed to provide our customers with essential water and waste water services makes Scottish Water the largest single user of electricity in the country. In light of this, we have pursued opportunities to support the development of green power in recent years - with more than twice as much renewable electricity now generated on our sites as we use nationwide.
"The roof at our site near Evanton provided an ideal opportunity with good solar potential to contribute to our local electricity needs. Working closely with the site team, the project was delivered smoothly and with minimal impact on the site's normal operation."
All main construction work has also recently been completed on a new 8 million litre water storage tank which has been built alongside the Water Treatment Works, with landscaping work due to take place in the coming weeks. The £5.5 million project has been delivered by Scottish Water alliance partner Efficient Service Delivery (ESD) and will improve security of water supply for customers in the area.
