We are delighted to announce that we have become a principal partner of Plymouth Argyle Football Club for the forthcoming 2023/24 season.

Retain Limited, a new addition to the Argyle partnership portfolio will see their logo adorn the back of the men’s first team’s playing shorts in a three-year deal.

Retain Limited is a well-established, three-in-one contractor for industrial and commercial roofing, scaffolding installation and maintenance, and commercial solar PV design and installation. Each one of the three services Retain provide has its own individual expert team with extensive experience and industry qualifications in their chosen field.

Argyle’s Head of Commercial, James Greenacre, said: “We are delighted to welcome Retain Limited to our group of partners for the 2023/24 season and beyond. Retain is a great fit for Argyle; they are well-established here in Plymouth and share our visions and values. 

“We look forward to collaborating with them in the years ahead, with the three-year term showing a firm level of commitment from both parties.

“There has never been a more exciting time to be involved with Argyle, and we can’t wait to work with Retain and develop this partnership over the coming seasons.”

Retain Limited, based at Forresters Business Park in Estover, Plymouth, is a brand with a growing reputation. Many of their employees, including company Founder and Director Jamie Gibbs, have previously served in the Royal Marines, and the firm endeavours to provide employment opportunities to help other Royal Marines re-adjust to the lifestyle of a UK civilian. They are also proud to work closely with the Royal Marines Charity (RMA).

Jamie Gibbs commented on the agreement: “We are incredibly excited to begin this new partnership with Plymouth Argyle Football Club.

“My team and I recognise the hard work and success that has gone into the club over recent years, both on and off the pitch and within our local community.

“The club is enjoying an incredible season, there is a tremendous buzz around the city, and the atmosphere at Home Park is always electric, thanks to the passionate Green Army.

“We are hugely proud and thrilled to be a part of Plymouth Argyle over the next three years and beyond.”

According to the BBC the UK is being hit by roughly a 54% increase in energy prices and it is set to increase again in October 2022

A worldwide price increase in fossil fuels has seen the sharpest rise in UK energy costs in over 30 years and they will increase again by the coming winter. This has given rise to the importance of cleaner, renewable energy sources, in particular, solar energy.

Industrial and commercial property owners are turning to PV solar panels to offset some of the costs of their energy consumption. Many of these buildings have a lot of unused roof space, waiting to be utilised to harness the power of the sun. But what are the benefits?

To start, the sun is a free source of renewable energy accessible by anyone. It also appeals to consumers when they know that your business is making efforts to become as carbon neutral as possible. Renewable energy has been a hot topic for decades and can make or break a potential client or customers decision to buy from you.

There is also the potential to offset a large proportion of your energy costs. This could also leave you with the opportunity to sell energy back to the national grid any excess energy you can’t utilise. Aligning your company with the UK pledge to hit net zero emissions by 2050 could also see more benefits further down the road. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has recently released their latest climate change report stating that “The evidence is clear: the time for action is now. We can halve emissions by 2030 ” making it an ever increasing importance to become as carbon neutral as possible.

The Centre for Alternative Technology has a handy tool that you can use to work out how much your PV solar system will produce. You can also work backwards with this calculation to work out how big your system needs to be, compared to your energy consumption needs. It’s important to know this information and to consult a professional, so that you get the correct system installed.

Although solar panels can be a costly investment, there are schemes out there that can help property owners achieve their energy goals. The Solar Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) can help alleviate the upfront costs of installing a solar system. The manufacturer will design, supply, install and own the system, while the property owner pays a subsidised fee for energy to offset the cost of the installation. At the end of the contract (usually between 10-25 years) the property owner can remove the installation, buy the installation or extend the PPA contract. There are also other financial options as outlined in our Finance section.

Overall and over a relatively short time, you could see the benefits of having a PV solar system far outweigh the initial monetary costs and will help your company and the UK move toward a cleaner future.

Retain Energy have a working relationship with Q-CELLS and SolarEdge, two of the leading solar equipment manufacturers, to give you a professional and high-quality service and system. To learn more about these services, or anything else related to your energy needs, contact the Retain Energy team on 0800 027 2244 or fill in our contact form to request a call back.

Cleaner energy for a cleaner future.

COP26 has now ended and a new global agreement (the Glasgow Climate Pact) was reached at the much-anticipated summit…

The aims of the agreement are to reduce the worst impacts of climate change that we have been experiencing but they are fears from critics that the agreement doesn’t go far enough to limit global warming

What’s in the COP26 agreement?

The non-legally binding agreement that derived from the two-week meeting sets the global agenda on climate change for the next 10 years: 

Emissions

It was agreed that countries would meet again next year to guarantee additional cuts to the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) which is a greenhouse gas that triggers climate change. The reason for this is to try and maintain temperature rises within 1.5^oC which scientists state is needed to prevent a ‘climate catastrophe’. However, the current pledges (if met) will only limit global warming to approximately 2.4^oC.

Coal 

For the first time at a COP event, there was a clear strategy to reduce the use of coal which is responsible for around 40% of annual CO2 emissions. However, countries only agreed a reduced commitment to ‘phase down’ rather than ‘phase out’ coal after a late intervention by both China and India.

Developing countries

The agreement also pledged to significantly increase financial assistance to the poorer countries to help them cope with the effects of climate change and assist them to make the switch to renewable energy.

There’s also the possibility of a trillion dollar a year fund from 2025 after a previous pledge for richer countries to provide $100bn (£72bn) a year by 2020 was not achieved. While some observers say the COP26 agreement represented the start of a breakthrough, some African and Latin American countries felt not enough progress was made at the summit.

Fossil fuel subsidies

At the summit, world leaders agreed to phase-out the subsidies that artificially lower the price of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas. However, no firm dates have been set as to when this would be implemented.

Trees

Leaders from more than 100 countries, which equates to 85% of the world’s forests, have promised to put a stop to deforestation by 2030. This is seen as an important move as trees are able to absorb huge amounts of CO2.

Similar initiatives in the past haven’t stopped deforestation, but this one will be better funded. However, it’s still unclear how the pledge will be policed over the coming years.

Methane

More than 100 countries have agreed to cut 30% of methane emissions by 2030. This powerful greenhouse gas is currently responsible for a third of human-generated atmospheric warming. The big emitters of China, Russia and India decided not to join but it’s hoped they will sign up later.

USA-China Agreement

The world’s biggest emitters of greenhouse gases have agreed to boost cooperation on tackling climate change over the next decade. Leaders of both countries have said they will work together on increasing the use of renewable energy, developing regulatory frameworks and utilising technologies such as carbon capture.

Climate Finance

Financial organisations that control $130tn have agreed to support clean technology, such as renewable energy, and direct finance away from the fossil fuel burning industries. The initiative is an attempt to involve private companies in achieving net zero status.

However, some environmental organisations have said without a greater commitment to ending support for fossil-fuels, this could be little more than a PR exercise which will not help achieve long term objectives.

Zero-Emission Vehicles

More than 30 countries, along with dozens of states and cities and a small number of vehicle companies agreed to work on manufacturing cars and vans to be net zero by 2035 in leading markets and 2040 globally.

How will countries be made to meet their pledges?

Most of the commitments made at COP26 will have to be self-policed by the respective authorities. Only a few countries will actually make their pledges legally binding which means they could face legal action if their pledges weren’t achieved within the agreed timescales.

What was the COP event?

The COP (Conference of the Parties) is a meeting that is held every 5 years and first started in 1995. COP26, which was held in Glasgow, started on Monday 1st November and ended on Friday 12th November.

Governments from almost 200 countries come together in front of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to discuss and make collective agreements on to resolve the challenge of the climate crisis we currently face.

If you would like to discover more about our premium commercial solar PV systems and the benefits it can bring to both your business and the ongoing fight against climate change, please contact the Retain Energy team on 0800 027 2244 or email us here.

Cleaner energy for a cleaner world.

It has been widely publicised throughout every media outlet this week and is believed by many to be our last opportunity to get a grip on rising temperatures to help avoid global catastrophe.

Thanks to the extensive media coverage on climate change, we should all know by now that the world is getting warmer because of emissions omitted from fossil fuels (mainly coal, gas and oil) that we still use. This change of climate has been heavily linked to more and more extreme and life-threatening weather events such as flooding and heatwaves.

The past decade has been the warmest since records began and governments from across the world all agree that collective action is needed sooner rather than later. For the COP26 climate conference, 200 or so countries have been asked for their plans on how they’re going to cut emissions by 2030.

What is the COP event?

The COP (Conference of the Parties) is a meeting that is held every 5 years and first started in 1995. COP26, which is currently being held in Glasgow, started last Sunday (31st October) and will end on Friday 12th November.

Governments from almost 200 countries come together in front of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to discuss and make collective agreements on to resolve the challenge of the climate crisis we currently face.

It’s been 26 years since the first meeting took place and now it’s time to act upon the promises that were made in the 2015 Paris agreement. This was a landmark agreement as almost every nation adopted to address climate change and the negative impact it was having on our planet.

What has been agreed at COP26?

Many countries had set out plans to reduce their emissions before the summit started last weekend, but there has been a spate of new announcements over the last few days:

• Trees: more than 100 world leaders promised to tackle deforestation, which is important because trees can absorb vast amounts of CO2. There have been similar initiatives before, but this one will be better funded
• Methane: more than 100 countries joined a scheme to cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030
• Coal: more than 40 countries have agreed to shift away from coal, the single biggest contributor to climate change
• Money: around 450 organisations controlling $130 trillion dollars – around 40% of global private assets – have agreed to back “clean” technology, such as renewable energy systems

Renewable energy solutions

That brings us nicely on to a subject we’re passionate about, renewable energy and in particular solar PV. Renewable energy is one of the most effective tools that we currently have in our fight against climate change, and we have every reason to believe it will succeed.

What’s even more prevalent to anyone who runs or owns a business, renewable technologies can increasingly save your organisation money as they replace the emissions from the fossil fuels that we continue to burn every day.

However, renewable energy has far more to offer than it just being a ‘green’ and money saving technology. This growing sector is creating more jobs, making the electricity grids more resilient, expanding energy access in third world and developing countries as well as helping lower our energy bills and dependence on fossil fuels.

All of those factors above have contributed to a renewable energy reawakening in recent years, with solar energy setting new records for the generation of clean electricity. So, it’s quite evident that renewable energy is already helping to address the climate change problem but now is the time to put our foot on the accelerator and speed things up.

If you would like to know more about our premium commercial solar PV solutions and the benefits it can bring to both your business and the fight against climate change, please don’t hesitate to contact the team on 0800 027 2244 or email us here.

Cleaner energy for a cleaner world.