Flash solar panels help slash leisure centre energy bills

The amount of gas and electricity needed to power leisure centres in Powys have been cut by 10%, following a £1m green energy investment.

Improvements have been made at all 14 sites run by Freedom Leisure for Powys County Council, including The Flash Welshpool, Llanfyllin and Llanfair Caereinion, backed by grants worth £284,881 from Sport Wales.

Other funds have mostly come from the council, but there have been contributions from Welsh Government’s Community Focused Schools programme and the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund.

Freedom Leisure’s gas use per year has now been cut by 750,000 kWh (9.6%) and its electricity use by 181,000 kWh (8.7%).

The total carbon savings are estimated at 210 tonnes of CO2e.

The carbon and energy saving measures the council has installed include:

• 80 kWp solar panels at the Flash Leisure Centre in Welshpool.
• 22 kWp solar panels with 40 kWp battery storage and LED lighting at Rhayader Leisure Centre.
• 18 kWp solar panels with 10 kWp battery storage and loft insulation at Builth Wells Sports Centre.
• Destratification fans (which help to balance internal temperatures) in the swimming pool halls at Brecon, Bro Ddyfi (Machynlleth), Builth Wells, East Radnor (Presteigne), Flash, Knighton, Llanidloes, Maldwyn (Newtown), Rhayader and Ystradgynlais.
• Replacement boilers for new energy efficient heating systems at Bro Ddyfi, Rhayader, Builth Wells and Llanfair Caereinion.
• Building management system (controls heating, ventilation and air conditioning) upgrades at Llandrindod Wells, Llanidloes, Llanfyllin and Rhayader.
• LED floodlight upgrade for the athletics track at Brecon and for the pitches at Brecon, Llanfyllin, Llanfair Caereinion and Ystradgynlais.
• New indoor LED lighting at Ystradgynlais, Brecon, Bro Ddyfi, Llanfair Caereinion, Rhayader, Flash, Maldwyn and Llanidloes.

The schemes have been designed by Powys County Council’s Property Design Services and managed by its Community Wellbeing and Strategic Property Teams.

“We are grateful to Sport Wales for this grant funding which, along with our own contribution, has allowed Freedom Leisure to make significant cuts to the energy it uses and to its carbon emissions in Powys,” said Councillor Jake Berriman, Powys County Council’s Cabinet Member for a Connected Powys.

“This work was done after condition surveys and carbon reports were compiled on all our leisure centres, which show we still have a very long way to go to meet our target – set by Welsh Government – for being net zero for greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

“As a council, we want to support our communities to be more sustainable for future generations as part of our Sustainable Powys approach.”

Welshpool’s Cllr Richard Church, Cabinet Member for a Safer Powys, added: “This work is vital. In the short-term, this winter, it will save money while fuel prices are rising and longer-term making leisure centres greener and better places to visit and work in.

“This is a good example of what can be done to many public buildings to make them sustainable for the long term. It shows the council is delivering on our commitment to make our county stronger, fairer and greener.”

Freedom Leisure has also implemented energy management plans at all 14 sites to ensure its cost reduction and carbon footprint reduction targets were met.

The council is investing a further £60,000 in four pilot projects to see which measures might work best at all sites, to further reduce energy use and carbon emissions:

• Install smart refrigerant controls at the Flash.
• Install dynamic burner controls on the boilers and smart controls on the air conditioning at Maldwyn.
• Add EndoTherm to water in the heating system at Brecon.
• Install smart thermostatic radiator valves at Ystradgynlais.

The council is also bidding for more Sport Wales funding for:

• Solar panels at Brecon, Maldwyn and Ystradgynlais.
• LED lighting upgrades at Maldwyn, Brecon and Builth Wells.
• Destratification fans in the fitness suites at the Flash, Maldwyn and Brecon.
• Swimming pool machinery efficiency measures at Maldwyn and Llanidloes.

PICTURE: The 80 kWp solar system at the Flash Leisure Centre in Welshpool.