FEATURE
RAY OF LIGHT
Donation – Sembcorp Energy UK operations director Dave Thompson ( left ) with Tommy Harrington , corporate and major donor fundraiser ( Middlesbrough ) for Zoe ’ s Place Baby Hospice .
Sembcorp ’ s energy-saving boost for Zoe ’ s Place
Teesside-headquartered Sembcorp Energy UK ( SEUK ) has donated more than £ 37,000 to Zoe ’ s Place Baby Hospice in Normanby to fund the installation of solar panels on the building , helping to bolster energy efficiency .
SEUK remains committed to helping the local community and , in 2022 , the company also facilitated the £ 15,000 replacement works of inefficient filament and fluorescent lighting at Zoe ’ s Place with modern LED fittings throughout the 250-year-old former convent building .
Chris Grant , facilities and compliance manager at Zoe ’ s Place , said the charity is already seeing a huge benefit from the updated lighting , especially amid the rising cost of energy .
He said : “ The new lights look great . They ’ ve improved the aesthetics of our hospice and , more importantly , have helped to reduce our energy consumption , inevitably saving us money .”
It has been estimated that the new lighting could save the charity up to 75 per cent of their annual lighting bill , equating to several thousands of pounds recovered each year .
This will afford them more money to spend on supporting their special babies , young children and their families .
“ Sembcorp is willing and able to reduce our carbon footprint further , by making us more energy efficient through the installation of solar panels , and the potential financial savings to Zoe ’ s Place will be hugely significant ,” added Chris .
“ Many thousands of pounds could be saved , over the next 25 years or so , really aiding our charity and the work we do .”
The planned solar panel system will be 18.23kWp ( kilowatt peak ) and will consist of 45 roof panels . It will make an annual energy production of 15.64MWh and is estimated to save 3tonne of CO2 emissions , which is equivalent to 45 trees grown for 10 years .
As well as funding the installation , SEUK is helping to facilitate the works , by finding an appropriate supplier to carry out the task – Stockton-based Marshall & McCourt .
Once installed and operational , it ’ s estimated the planned solar panels at Zoe ’ s Place will save the charity circa £ 2,700 per annum on its energy bills ( in line with its current energy supply contract ), and this figure could rise if electricity rates follow current projections .
Dave Thompson , operations director at Sembcorp Energy UK , said : “ Zoe ’ s Place is an important charity that helps families at very difficult times in their lives .
“ Sembcorp Energy UK is dedicated to
Visit – Zoe ’ s Place Baby Hospice facilities and compliance manager Chris Grant ( centre ) with corporate fundraiser Tommy Harrington ( right ) and Sembcorp Energy UK operations director Dave Thompson .
helping the charity become more energy efficient , in turn reducing their costs , through our solar panel and LED lighting projects .
“ The money saved on energy bills would be best redirected toward further serving children and their families through Zoe ’ s Place .
“ In time , we hope the solar panels could also generate income for the hospice .”
Zoe ’ s Place has roots both on Teesside and in the West Midlands and is the only baby-specific facility of its kind in the North-East .
The charity ’ s Teesside facility offers palliative , respite and end-of-life care to babies and infants aged from birth to five years who are suffering from life-limiting or life-threatening conditions .
Find out more about SEUK at sembcorpenergy . co . uk .
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