SSE Energy Solutions and the University of Glasgow have partnered to launch the ‘most detailed’ research ever conducted into the performance of renewable technologies in the business sector.
It comes following an ‘unprecedented’ uptake by businesses in meter renewable technologies such as solar panels, heat pumps, and battery storage despite ‘very few’ studies critically analysing the performance of such solutions.
The university said that it is anticipated that the study, which will utilise digital twin technology, will identify gaps in performance and routes to improvements. It is set to recruit a PhD student for the work by March, with them then being embedded with SSE for the duration of the PhD.
SSE added that the announcement of the research underlines its commitment to the levelling up agenda with plans to invest £7.5 billion on low carbon technologies and infrastructure to spur a green recovery, helping to boost jobs and opportunities.
Neil Kirkby, MD of SSE Enterprise, said, “At SSE we continue to prove that greener also means fairer and that decarbonisation benefits us all in more ways than just the obvious. We want to provide a solid platform for local training and employment programmes that make a real difference in upskilling communities. This PhD funding and the research it requires is another way we provide a holistic approach to supporting the levelling up of the UK.”
Professor Zhibin Yu, professor of thermal energy at the University of Glasgow, added, “We are delighted to work with SSE Energy Solutions on this exciting project, which brings together the university’s existing research on heat pumps with SSE’s vast trove of energy data to cast new light on how renewable technologies perform in the real world.
“That will help us develop models and methods for energy users to maximise the uptake of renewable energy and minimise operational costs in the future. It’s a great opportunity for a PhD student to make a real contribution to how we make the transition to net-zero in the decades to come.”