Western Power Distribution set to save 35 tonnes of CO2 a year

Western Power Distribution set to save 35 tonnes of CO2 a year with innovative lighting upgrade

Western Power Distribution (WPD) is a busy operation, delivering electricity to more than 7.6 million customers over a 55,300 sq km service area, and it takes its environmental responsibilities very seriously. Environmental care and protection is a key priority for the business and its highly successful “keen to be green” initiative, supports a range of community activities like tree-planting and energy conservation.

In an effort to improve energy-efficiency at its own Cwmbran site, WPD enlisted commercial lighting specialist, Litenow Limited, to upgrade 1,049 of its fluorescent lamps. A specialist in low-carbon retrofit technologies – Litenow was able to slot the replacement low-energy T5 lamps into the existing fittings at the WPD site.

Due to size and technical differences between the old-style fluorescent lamps and new T5 lamps, previous practice for upgrading energy-efficient lighting was often to replace all the light fittings – a wasteful approach to carbon reduction. However WPD was able to reduce energy use without the expense, waste and disruption of replacing the light fittings.

As a result of the project, WPD is expected to reduce its annual lighting energy consumption by 45%, saving 65,798 kWh of electricity every year. This translates to an annual cost saving of £8,480. The massive savings mean that the upgrade is projected to pay for itself in just 3 years and 2 months.

Mo Eshelby, WPD’s East Wales Distribution Manager explained:

We are delighted at the prospect of cutting the carbon footprint of our Cwmbran site by an amazing 35 tonnes of CO2 a year. The lighting installation is proving to be a cost-effective part of achieving this goal.

Steve Hiscox, Managing Director of Litenow, comments:

Finding new ways to make budgets stretch further, while also keeping an eye on sustainability, have proved to be the twin challenges of this economic climate. Companies like Western Power Distribution show that it’s possible to meet these challenges head on, if you’re willing to look to innovative lighting solutions.