A £314,000 solar energy project has been completed at the Penwhirn water treatment works near Stranraer, which supplies drinking water to thousands of customers across Wigtonshire.

The project involved the installation of 294 solar panels on top of existing tanks at the Penwhirn Reservoir site. These panels are expected to generate 0.159GWh of green energy annually – equivalent to the electricity required to boil approximately 706,666 kettles.

This renewable energy generation will meet almost 20% of the water treatment works' power needs. Consequently, the project is anticipated to save around 31 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent each year, making the water treatment process less carbon-intensive and supporting Scottish Water's ambition to achieve net zero emissions by 2040.


The initiative was led by Scottish Water Horizons, the commercial subsidiary of the publicly owned utility, with contractor R&A Group delivering the installation.

Pat Stakim, Scottish Water Horizons Project Manager, stated: "We’re delighted to complete this solar project at Penwhirn water treatment works, which will help cut the carbon associated with providing this essential service to thousands of local customers."

Highlighting the broader context of Scottish Water's renewable energy efforts, Stakim added: "In the past three years, Scottish Water has installed 14.4GWh of solar energy across its sites, compared to 9.6GWh in the previous 12 years - we are continuing to ramp up the scale and pace of delivering renewables projects across the country, all of which are helping us towards are net zero emissions target for 2040."

Michael McMinn, Scottish Water Operations Team Leader, commented on the local impact: "It is great to have this solar project complete and in operation, helping us make the process of providing fresh, clean drinking water to our customers less carbon intensive and better for the environment. Almost a fifth of our power usage on site will now be met through solar power which is another step towards cutting our carbon emissions and reaching our net zero emissions target."