Cost fears may see car park solar plan put on hold

Councillors are being urged to back a plan to put extra solar panels on a car park roof despite fears the scheme could be too expensive.

Cars on the top floor of the St Martin's Gate car park in Worcester would be parked below canopies carrying the panels.

One such block was built in 2018, but if the plans go ahead, panels would be extended to the whole roof.

Earlier this month, councillors delayed work to enable more information on costs to be be sought, after being told they had risen by £140,000.

A council committee agreed at a meeting on 3 September to push ahead with the planning process, despite doubts over the scheme's affordability.

Shane Flynn, corporate director for finance and resources, told the policy and resources committee the reduced profitability of the scheme was "very marginal and carries a significant risk”.

Work would not be progressed until the business case was “more robust”, with some councillors suggesting the panels be floor-mounted, resulting in the loss of the whole roof level of the car park.

The same meeting heard costs of another solar project, at Perdiswell Leisure Centre, had also risen.

Worcester City Council's planning committee will be told on Friday that the St Martin's Gate scheme would reduce carbon emissions by more than 90 tonnes a year.

The council aspires to cut carbon emissions by half before 2030, and planning documents suggest the panels would be a "key component of its climate change mitigation efforts".

About 40 spaces among more than 700 in the car park would be lost to accommodate the canopy supports, although the remaining spaces would be larger as a result.

Electricity generated by the scheme would feed the 12 electric vehicle charging points in the car park and power other needs like lights and lifts, with excess energy sold to the grid.

This report was contributed to by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.

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