Renewable Energy

Renewable Energy Plan

Our quarries at Brassington Moor and Ryder Point consume over £1m worth of electricity per year. The majority of this power is consumed during the crushing, screening, grinding and classifying blasted limestone to powders process. This high cost leaves the business vulnerable both to shifting energy markets and to government energy policy.

Energy efficiency and evolving business practices both have their part to play. However, we will continue to be a large energy user, and with electricity prices expected to as much as double over the coming decade, it has become clear that our long-term future depends on it generating our own energy.

Investment in renewable energy forms an integral part of our responsible energy policy and will give the company more control over its electricity costs as well as helping to secure the future of the business and its 170 local employees.

Wind Turbines: Ryder Point

Following approval by local planning authorities, the construction of two 2.3MW wind turbines at our Ryder Point quarry was completed in January 2016. Manufactured and maintained by ENERCON they are 102m high to the blade tips. A new serrated design on the leading edges makes them some of the quietest on the market. 

Solar

A 3MW solar farm was planned at our Curzon Lodge site but unfortunately fell foul of feed-in tariff support reductions from the government. However, we still boast a 9kW solar panel array plus a 12kW TESLA storage battery which is installed on the roof of the head office.

ISO 50001 Energy Management Standard

Longcliffe has been certified to the ISO 14001 environmental standard for a number of years, and last year became the first operation of our kind in the country to be certified to the ISO 50001 energy management standard. This entails constant improvement in the way in which energy usage is managed as well as doing everything possible to minimise energy consumption and to maximise the efficiency with which energy products are bought. This is not just about reducing our impact on the local and wider environment - as anyone who is responsible for paying their household energy bill can attest - it is also a question of keeping costs to a sensible minimum.