Energy & Power Awards 2019

14 | SME NEWS - 2019 Energy & Power Awards With the world increasingly focused on moving towards greener and more renewable energy sources, Scottish firm Greener Energy Group are spearheading the charge at home. Following their win in SME News’ Energy and Power Awards, we profile the firm to learn more about their desire to reduce fuel poverty and tackle climate change. Best Residential Energy Saving Products Provider 2019 - Scotland From the firm’s humble beginnings in owner Peter Chalmer’s dining room table in 2014, Greener Energy have since expanded exponentially to become one of the best domestic energy-saving assessors in Scotland today. Performing more than one hundred free energy assessments on a weekly basis to people all over Scotland, the firm advise homeowners on more efficient ways to heat their homes. Owner Peter Chalmers began Greener Energy five years ago, seeking to offer free energy reduction consultations to domestic clients across the country. With key information regarding renewable energy, and arranging installation through reputable tradesmen across Scotland, more and more clients began to take notice of his work. By providing vital information and creating awareness about energy-saving products, Peter soon found himself far busier than he could handle and had to take the next step in expanding the business. Within the first year, Peter had moved the firm into a 400sq foot office premises, adding and recruiting more staff to continue growing the success he had experienced. To this day, Greener Energy now operates over a combined 4000sq foot space between offices and industrial units with more than fifty members of staff. The central mission of the firm remains the same as it was when Peter founded it in his dining room; to reduce fuel poverty and tackle climate change one customer at a time. Advising homeowners across Scotland on more efficient ways to heat their homes, Greener Energy’s work is instrumental in helping every person do their bit in the ongoing fight against climate change. By providing information on any government funding or incentives to become greener, the firm are opening people’s eyes to the wonders of renewable energy. Greener Energy are also able to provide access to private finance for people who do not have the funds to access the life- changing and planet-saving products that the firm offer. In order to offer access to these incentives and funding options, the firm has undergone a series of audits and extensive vetting processes in gaining their accreditation. Just some of the products that Greener Energy offer to help homeowners increase their energy efficiency include air source heat pumps, solar panels, German electric heating, high-efficiency boilers, and spray foam insulation. As well as offering supply and installation on all these products, the firm also offer ongoing service and maintenance to ensure they run and work properly. Operating primarily within the renewable energy sector, Greener Energy are seeking to provide domestic homeowners across the country with sustainable alternatives to heating systems that use fossil fuels such as oil, gas and liquefied petroleum gas. However, Peter and the team understand that working in the sector comes with challenges, and they are prepared to meet them head on. The two main challenges that Greener Energy face are awareness and financial constraints. With renewable energy still being a fairly new concept in the United Kingdom, despite being available for approximately twenty years, there are still levels of scepticism around it. Encouraging customers to invest in renewable energy sources can be tricky, but the evidence of the good it can do is undeniable. Also, financial constraints make it hard for homes that need it most to access renewable energy sources. Without government assistance of some sort, homes can be left out in the cold due to financial restrictions, despite the massive benefit to both the customer and the environment that renewable energy provides. Those homes are often in rural areas, which are made even harder to reach during times of bad weather, when it is unsafe to install many of Greener Energy’s products. However, it is not all challenges, as Scotland also provides great opportunities for further development of renewable and sustainable energy sources. With large areas of the country being rural and large amounts of off-grid properties, there is a wealth of opportunity for Greener Energy to continue developing and installing renewable energy across vast regions of Scotland.