South Oxhey Leisure Centre could be set for solar panels

Under the proposals, which have not yet been signed off, Three Rivers District Council would pay for the panels upfront, with the electricity generated then bought at an agreed price by Sports and Leisure Management (SLM) Ltd, which runs the centre.

A council officer said the centre is one of the council’s “highest electricity-consuming buildings” and solar panels would help the authority reach its commitment to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2030.

She continued: “The system would be funded through the council’s capital budget and repaid via a power purchase agreement with our leisure provider, SLM.

(Image: Google Street View) “Under this agreement, SLM would buy the electricity we generate at a fixed rate aligned to their current contract. The total forecasted cost is just under £120,000 and includes project management set-up.”

It is expected to benefit the council to the tune of more than £26,000 each year, including income from selling the electricity to SLM and a reduced utility subsidy it currently pays to SLM.

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“Importantly, the installation will save over 24 tonnes of CO2 a year and over 1,000 tonnes across its lifetime with a payback period of between four and five years.

“The system would remain council-owned, independent of the leisure contract, and would have to be supported by a dedicated maintenance arrangement.”

A meeting of the district council’s climate change and leisure committee yesterday (July 2) agreed that officers should “seek contractor quotations” and present a final business case to the policy and resources committee in September.

The council recently installed 500 solar panels at William Penn Leisure Centre, funded by grants, which provided 44% of the centre’s electricity consumption in April.

An application from the council for Sport England grant funding for solar panels at South Oxhey Leisure Centre was rejected.