Ruthin-Pwllglas Golf Club Powers Towards Net Zero Goal
A scenic North Wales golf club is driving towards its target of reaching net-zero by 2034 – well ahead of the Government’s 2050 target – after installing a new solar system.
Ruthin-Pwllglas, with ideal south-facing views and the new £13,000 solar array on its greenkeeper’s building, is on course to complete its net-zero mission in ten years.
It has been helped by a grant of £10,000 from the Clocaenog Forest Wind Farm Fund and with annual savings of £2,000 the club will pay for its share within 18 months.
It follows closely on the installation of a borehole last year which was also supported by a £10,000 grant from the wind farm fund – they used the services of a water diviner to identify the optimum spot to drill – and which provides up to 20,000 gallons of water a day to irrigate the course.
The club already had a smaller 10-panel solar installation, but the new solar array is double the size and is expected to generate over 8,000 kilowatt-hours a year to sell back to the grid at 15p a unit – members can even hook up their electric and hybrid cars to charge while they play.
Commitment to Sustainability
The project has been managed by club member Andy Gosse who said:
“The small first phase installation had been successful, and so we decided to install a larger one alongside on the south-facing roof of the greenkeeper’s building.
“We want to make the club as sustainable as possible and this means we are not only saving the planet, but we’re also saving our members’ money at the same time.
“The whole world is going green, and we need to go green too. There’s money to be saved in the process, and we have a commitment to a greener future and to the financial security of the club.
“The new solar panels will mean that we will be producing 70 per cent of the electricity we need here every year, mainly for the clubhouse and bar.
“The added bonus for members like me who have a hybrid electric car is that I can hook it up to a charging point and four hours later when I finish my round the battery is charged and ready to go.
“The club also has two golf buggies which are handy for some of the older members and enable them to keep playing the game they love beyond the time when they might otherwise have had to stop.”
Green Energy Investment
The new installation has been put in by Corwen-based D A Hughes Electrical and the business’s Cillian Hughes said:
“The golf club have an ideal set-up here with a south-facing roof, and they could even install more panels here on the clubhouse itself.
“It is a big saving for them, and they’re saving the planet at the same time.”
Support from the Clocaenog Forest Wind Farm Fund
The Clocaenog Forest Wind Farm Fund was launched in 2020 with a commitment to distribute grants worth £19 million over the next 25 years to community projects and businesses across Conwy and Denbighshire.
The money, £700,000 annually, comes from energy giant RWE’s Clocaenog Forest Wind Farm whose 27 turbines generate 96 megawatts of green electricity for the National Grid.
It is administered by Community and Voluntary Support Conwy which has already allocated over £3 million in grants to local communities and Wind Farm Fund Manager Esyllt Adair said:
“It’s a terrific opportunity for the area and for its communities and businesses, because there is a focus on having an economic benefit as well, especially after the pandemic.
“The project at Ruthin-Pwllglas Golf Club is small-scale, but it is really important to the club and the amenity it provides for local people. It’s a very green organisation.”
“We would urge businesses, groups and organisations who are interested in applying to the fund to get in touch with us to discuss their projects or ideas as early as possible, so we can support them through the application process.
“This is a fantastic opportunity, and we are working closely with local people to maximise the impact of this investment in our communities.”
For more information on Ruthin-Pwllglas Golf Club go to https://ruthinpwllglasgc.uk/
For more on the Clocaenog Forest Wind Farm Fund go to https://www.cvsc.org.uk/en/funding/clocaenog
