After installing the first solar park in Kuršėnai, Šiauliai region last year, this September the company will install remote solar parks in Zarasai, Marijampolė, and Širvintai regions. The team, together with a local farmer, have settled endangered, protected Skudde sheep in their first solar park. The team hopes to continue this practice in other regions.
People already value green energy
„Some years before I had to explain what are the solar parks and how they produce electricity. Now people are interested in where they can get green energy for consumption. The first park in Kuršėnai generates 5.2 million kilowatt hours of electricity and has become a model of synergy, where sheep mow meadow where solar panels are installed. Sustainable, renewable energy is attracting interest in Lithuania and bringing real benefits to its consumers,“ says Tomas Šimanauskas, CEO of the company.
The power plant in Kuršėnai not only provides green energy for homes or offices but also creates a favorable environment for the breeding of Skudde sheep that is particularly suited to the Baltic States. Sheep mow the grass growing around and under the solar modules, in this case, these animals ensure that the plants do not cast shadows on the solar modules and that the park is fully operational.
This practice of sheep mowing the area in solar parks is common in Canada, the US, and Western European countries. Cutting the grass protects the natural flora of the grasslands. It is also more environmentally friendly than using a petrol mower to cut the grass, using chemicals to kill it, or covering the groud with special reflective fabrics.
The company has expanded its solar power plants to four sites across Lithuania by this January. In early February, the team announced that green electricity would be available to residents and businesses. The number of future user was surprising – for example, a 700 kW solar park in Širvintos was booked in just a few days.
Find the opportunity to save money
„It is important to us that solar energy in Lithuania is connected with society in a sustainable way and contributes to the sustainable development of business. Housing the sheep in the solar park is our small contribution to the preservation of the land's economic value and biodiversity,“ says Deiminta Noreikienė, Commercial Director of „Saulės Grąža“.
Susiję straipsniai
The solar park in Kuršėnai has also become a popular destination for families. During the warm season, people come to say hello to the sheep mowing the area.
„Lithuanians value the sustainable energy generated by solar power plants for several reasons. Firstly, it contributes to preserving the environment, living more sustainably, and using green electricity. Secondly, they are also cost-effective, allowing savings and a reduction of up to 3 times in electricity costs. We calculate that an investment in a solar power plant with its own remote location pays for itself in 5-6 years on average, depending on the amount of electricity consumption and the amount of power of the purchased plant,“ says T. Šimanauskas, head of the team based in Kaunas Science and Technology Park and Vilnius.
Residents of flats and private houses usually choose to have a remote power plant. „The parks installed by „Saulės Grąža“ are distinguished by the installation of double-sided modules, which increase the amount of electricity generated by absorbing energy not only from the sun, but also from reflections on the ground.