Network Rail offices and stations are set to be supplied with solar energy after it secured what it calls a “revolutionary deal” with EDF Renewables.
The Corporate Purchase Power Agreement between the pair is the first for a British railway and will result in Network Rail having 64GWh of clean energy, every year, at a fixed cost, over the next 14 years. This will provide around 15% of the electricity that Network Rail needs for its offices, its depots and managed stations. This, it explained, is known as “non-traction energy”.
The agreement means EDF Renewables can now kick off work on a solar facility earmarked for Bloy’s Grove, which is near Swainsthorpe. It is expected it will help save around 60,000 tonnes of emissions over its lifetime, with EDF to offer a community fund, with £20,000 paid annually over the 35-year lifespan the project is expected to have.
