Overview of the challenge
As one of the oldest and most recognisable cricket clubs in the world, Derbyshire County Cricket Club (DCCC) has an enormous supporter following and makes its ground available for a host of events throughout the year. Rising energy costs were seen as an increasing threat to the Club’s long term survival and business model and they were looking at new ways of addressing these challenges.
The 3aaaa County Ground site has two main buildings, the pavilion and the grandstand. Each building has a remarkably different energy demands and roof types.
Our approach
We installed 582 panels across both buildings totalling 147.195kW. The pavilion building benefited from a 29.9kw system onto the south facing tiled roof, which enabled DCCC to claim the deemed export tariff. The second part of the system was placed onto the flat roof of the grandstand and took the system to the maximum allowed by the DNO (Distribution Network Operator).
The result
The solar PV system at the 3aaa County Ground has allowed DCCC to reduce their overheads and concentrate on delivering world-class cricket. The ground now hosts a multitude of events throughout the year with a major portion of their electrical demand coming from self-generation.
Custom Solar, locally-based in Chesterfield, are specialists in solar technology and have demonstrated their expertise and experience in this area. They provided us with a professional first-class service, delivering the project on time and on budget.
They safely delivered and installed over 500 solar panels on the roofs of two separate buildings at The 3aaa County Ground, working flexibly around our busy venue.
We, like many other local businesses, are always looking to find ways we can operate more efficiently, and the installation of energy-efficient solar panels will significantly reduce the Club’s energy costs by up to 30% per year and help drive long-term sustainability.
We have enjoyed such a successful partnership on the back of installing an iconic solar system that we have decided to support local cricket and have launched the Custom Solar festival of Cricket which will take place in Queens Park, Chesterfield on an annual basis. This will see Derbyshire take on Yorkshire for a fiery annual contest.
Matthew Brailsford, Managing Director at Custom Solar
