A greener future: Resthaven’s bold move towards solar energy efficiency

An energy-efficient future is on the horizon for South Australian aged care provider, Resthaven, as its extensive solar panel installation project gets underway.

The organisation says it will reduce carbon emissions by 9% once the panels are installed across all sites by the end of July. This includes residential care homes, community services and corporate office buildings. 

“Resthaven is working to reduce our impact on the environment and to cut our carbon footprint,’ Resthaven CEO Darren Birbeck explained. 

“We are committed to fulfilling our environmental responsibilities. Investing in solar is just one of the ways we are doing this.”

Most aged care facilities lend themselves to solar panel installations as their large footprints equate to large amounts of roof space. These spaces are often wasted.

However, solar systems offer significant energy savings plus protections against future increases in electricity costs. Given the relatively stable energy requirements, providers will generally see their daytime costs completely offset by solar power.

South Australia has regularly led the way with its solar energy production with several examples of the State being entirely powered by solar energy.

Emmet O’Donovan, Resthaven’s Manager of Building and Capital Works, said their decision to adopt solar energy was partially driven by the realisation that they could produce high amounts of energy each day.

“The nature of our business means that we have a large roof footprint. We are utilising this to generate the greatest solar energy possible. A lot of our energy usage is during the day, so we are able to directly use what we generate, as well as return some energy to the grid.”

The rooftop solar systems are a combined 1,511 kilowatts and are expected to generate 2,252 megawatt-hours annually. They have been installed in partnership with CME, Suntrix and Dsquared Consulting.

Resthaven is not the only aged care provider to embrace solar power, with the likes of Regis Aged Care, AnglicareSA and Bolton Clarke among those to install panels in recent years.

Last November, BaptistCare (NSW, ACT & WA) also announced a ten-year deal to purchase renewable energy from Flow Power to reduce its carbon footprint. 

Resthaven’s solar installations will provide increased transparency for energy savings, too, with residents, staff and community members able to view solar energy generation information via a screen in each site’s reception area.

Additionally, the organisation said it uses reticulated water for gardens, energy-efficient lighting and waste minimisation strategies as part of its carbon emissions reduction plan.