National Grid (Formerly Western Power Distribution) | 80kW Solar PV and Backup Power Installation | Bude, Cornwall

80kW Solar PV | Backup Power Capability | EV Charging | 4.3-Year Payback | 23.3% Estimated Annual ROI

When the company responsible for delivering electricity to homes and businesses chooses your technology to power its own facilities, it's a strong endorsement of the quality, reliability and performance of your solutions.

Western Power Distribution, now part of National Grid Electricity Distribution, selected an 80kW solar energy system for its newly constructed facility in Bude, Cornwall.

The objective was to deliver more than reduced electricity bills. The installation needed to generate renewable energy for everyday building

operations while also providing essential backup power in the event of a grid electricity failure.

The Challenge – Powering the People Who Keep the Grid Running

As an electricity distribution network operator, National Grid understands better than most the importance of reliable power.

Its new facility required electricity throughout the working day for offices, lighting, heating, air conditioning and electric vehicle charging.

However, an equally important consideration was maintaining power availability during an electricity outage.

The system therefore needed to deliver two key benefits:

• Energy efficiency: Reduce grid electricity consumption and ongoing operating costs.
• Power resilience: Provide backup electricity to support site operations when the incoming grid supply is unavailable.

The Solution – 80kW of Commercial Solar with Backup Capability

An 80kW commercial solar PV system was installed to provide renewable electricity directly to the building, reducing the amount of energy purchased from the grid.

The system was designed to support:

• Office equipment: Computers, communications and everyday office operations.
• LED lighting: Supplying renewable electricity for internal and external lighting.
• Building heating: Helping offset electricity consumed by the heating system.
• Air conditioning: Supporting cooling requirements, particularly during periods of strong solar generation.
• Electric vehicle charging: Providing renewable electricity for EV charging.
• Backup power: Supporting the site's electrical requirements during grid interruptions, within the designed backup capacity.

By combining renewable energy generation with backup capability, the installation delivers both financial and operational benefits.

Outstanding Financial Performance

Alongside the operational advantages, the installation was designed to deliver an exceptionally attractive financial return.

With an estimated payback period of just 4.3 years, the system represents an annual simple return on investment of approximately 23.3%.

Financial highlights

• 23.3% estimated annual simple ROI
• 4.3-year estimated payback period
• 232.6% gross cumulative return over 10 years
• 132.6% net cumulative ROI over 10 years
• 465.1% gross cumulative return over 20 years
• 365.1% net cumulative ROI over 20 years

These projections assume consistent annual financial savings before maintenance, degradation, financing and other costs.

Once the initial investment has been recovered, the system can continue delivering valuable electricity savings for many years, helping protect the facility against future increases in energy costs.

More Than Financial Payback – Operational Resilience

For National Grid, the importance of maintaining an electrical supply during an outage cannot be underestimated.

While commercial solar is often installed primarily to reduce electricity costs, this project also considered what happens when the grid itself becomes unavailable.

The backup capability provides an additional level of operational resilience, helping the facility maintain designated electrical services during interruptions to the incoming supply.

This combination of renewable generation and backup power makes the installation particularly relevant to businesses and organisations where electricity reliability is a priority.

System Specifications

• Client: Western Power Distribution (now National Grid Electricity Distribution)
• Location: Bude, Cornwall
• Building: Newly constructed operational facility
• Solar PV capacity: 80kW
• Applications: Offices, lighting, heating, air conditioning and EV charging
• Additional capability: Backup electricity during grid outages
• Estimated annual simple ROI: 23.3%
• Estimated payback: 4.3 years
• Project focus: Renewable energy, reduced operating costs and operational resilience

Trusted by the People Who Provide Your Power

There is something particularly significant about delivering an energy solution for an electricity distribution network operator.

National Grid's business is built around delivering electricity reliably to millions of customers. Its decision to invest in solar generation and backup capability at its own facility demonstrates the importance of energy efficiency and resilience.

For Callidus Trade, projects like this represent exactly what commercial solar should achieve: reliable technology, measurable financial returns and a system designed around the operational requirements of the customer.

When the people responsible for delivering your electricity trust Callidus with their own energy requirements, that speaks volumes.

Callidus Trade – Engineered Power Solutions You Can Depend On.