Loan helps hotel save energy and save cash

Whitley Hall Hotel, in Sheffield, carried out a refurbishment, costing more than £50,000, after receiving an interest-free loan from The Carbon Trust. The result was a 26.5 per cent reduction in energy bills, including nearly 32 per cent off electricity.

The Carbon Trust provides interest-free loans to businesses, through contractors, to encourage them to reduce energy usage. An added incentive is the fact that the loans are repaid out of the savings the businesses make in reducing energy bills.

Whitley Hall owner David Broadbent said: “In financial terms, it’s a decision that makes itself, and in business terms, it’s a no-brainer, to be honest. When the loan is repaid, we will still be left with all the energy-saving technology we have installed, which means we save even more money.”

Contractor Priera carried out the work. Director Craig Duce said: “We investigated every opportunity for improving energy efficiency, from heat recovery to building management systems and voltage regulation; we even looked at the possible installation of an electric turbine generator from the water course flowing through the grounds.”

But not all energy-saving steps require a loan to fund them.

Mr Duce added: “We told them to fit low-energy lamps as well as fit plug-in timers for their drinks fridges, so that they could save energy during the night.

“Sometimes, solutions may seem blindingly obvious to a technician, but if you give that sort of information for free, it builds up a bond of trust with the client.”