The Highland Council's Energy and Sustainability team have won the best innovation prize at the annual Energy North Awards which were held in Inverness last week.
The Council has embarked on a project entitled Carbon Saving Capital Works for Council Buildings and Properties, with a specific emphasis on biomass, and in doing so has become an innovative leader in the renewable energy and low carbon sector.
75 biomass plant installation projects have been completed and are expected to attract an income of around £850K annually. The Council has also introduced a supply and maintenance contract to provide on-hand expertise for all servicing and maintenance issues and come up with an effective way to overcome logistical challenges. Biomass energy cabins are now used for many of the installations which means the cabin itself is transported onto site, connected and commissioned as a self-contained unit.
As well as installing domestic and non-domestic biomass units, 90 sites across the Highlands have had solar photovoltaic installations which are expected to receive feed in tariff payments of around £100K.
The Council's Director of Development and Infrastructure, Stuart Black attended the award ceremony to collect the award. He said: "The judges praised the work of the team in supporting biomass in the Highlands and finding solutions to the challenges of making existing buildings as energy efficient as possible."
This programme contributes towards achieving a low carbon Highlands and is a main factor in support of the Council's Carbon CLEVER programme.
Chairman Councillor Thomas Prag congratulated staff for their work. He said: "This is an excellent result and follows on from our success of achieving 1st place in the CES Scottish National Renewables League and 3rd in the RES European Champions League. Making our buildings more energy efficient is a priority as not only does it make substantial reductions to running costs but it also reduces our carbon footprint.
"Our stance towards embracing renewable and sustainable technology and becoming Carbon CLEVER has led us to become a significant leader in public sector renewables and this forward thinking approach offers long term benefits for the Highlands."
