Agriculture and Solar - A Practical Analysis - Irish Solar Energy Association

Agriculture and Solar
A Practical Analysis

Working in partnership with Glanbia Ireland and SSE Airtricity, we have launched this renewable
solar energy solution to market. FarmGen has combined the collective knowledge, experience
and expertise of all parties to bring a turn- key solar powered energy solution to Glanbia Ireland
farmers.

This technology will help farmers grow their business sustainably into the future while improving
energy efficiency on the farm and reducing bills.

                                                                                               farmgen.ie

FarmGen
A Collaborative Effort

Glanbia Ireland                                Activ8 Energies

Glanbia Ireland is an ambitious, integrated    Activ8 Energies, established in 2007
agri-food and nutrition business, with a       established themselves as Irelands
diverse portfolio of quality ingredients,      largest solar panel company in 2009 and
leading consumer and Agri brands including     have continued to lead the solar market
Avonmore. It processes a milk pool of          in Ireland since. With engineering at its
almost three billion litres from 21 counties   core, the companies expertise in the
and exports high quality dairy and Agri        field was rewarded with a 50% stake
ingredients as well as products to over 100    holding by SSE Airtricity in 2018 leading
countries. It is the largest buyer and user    to continued shared projects and
of Irish grain. Glanbia Ireland is a joint     installations in the commercial sector.
venture 60% owned by Glanbia Co-op and
40% owned by Glanbia plc. With annual
revenue of €1.9 billion, Glanbia Ireland has
11 processing plants, 52 Agri branches and
over 2,000 employees.

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Irish Domestic Solar Market
We are headquartered in Carrickmacross, Co. Monaghan and
have several satellite offices across Ireland. Installing systems
from Malin to Mizen, from West Kerry to Belfast. We have a
number of national installation teams along with dedicated
servicing teams for our existing 12,000+ installations.

We are Irelands solar experts.

We are the largest solar installer in Ireland.

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Commercial Initiatives

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FarmGen | An Introduction
FarmGen was established by Glanbia Ireland, SSE
Airtricity and Activ8 Energies with the following goals:

◂To increase the use of Renewables in the GI supply
   chain

◂To better understand the energy needs of the dairy
   sector

◂To prepare for a future of export tariffs within the
   market

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1   3

    Energy Intensive Processes

1    Milking – Vacuum Pumps

2    Cooling – Bulk Tanks        2

3    Hot Water – Wash down

                                             8

Energy Intensive Processes

               1. Two high usage periods per day corresponding with milking schedules

               2. Minimal midday usage

All making an inverse usage curve vs the solar production graph

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Daily Usage Trends
                  Inverse Demand Curve Solution

                                                        15kWhr
                                                        Storage

- Storage is needed– but not always a lithium
- Dairy farms already have a thermal battery in place
- 200l cylinder = 15kWhr of Electric storage ∆   70°

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FarmGen

The Package

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Grants & Allowances
TAMS II Grant Aid*
- @40% grant aid

Accelerated Capital Allowance
- Corporate or income tax allowance based on Farm
organisation set up

Financing
- Easy financed through Finance Ireland through Fund Equip

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Installation Samples

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Installation Samples

                       14

FarmGen
Circuit Level Monitoring

Circuit Level Monitoring
   Traditional Set Up

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Circuit Level Monitoring
   Traditional Set Up

                           17

Circuit Level Monitoring
     Robotic Set Up

                           18

Circuit Level Monitoring
     Robotic Set Up

                           19

FarmGen
Main Findings

BEC Grant aided Projects

▪ BEC
  ▪   20% project success rate
  ▪   Did not include projects in 2021
  ▪   BEC is not fit for purpose in agricultural settings

                                                            21

TAMS II Grant Aided Projects

▪ TAMS II
  ▪   50% project success rate
      ▪   Resubmissions – Eventual 100%

  ▪   Multiple barriers to entry
      ▪   Administration on both sides
      ▪   TAMS II Cap punishing progressive farms
      ▪   Small Reference Costs for grant aid
      ▪   H&S stock upgrades a prerequisite
          ▪   Skylight cages – Underroof

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A Note on TAMS II

▪ TAMS II Solar Addition
  ▪   March 2019 – Announcement of €10 Million in
      funding by DAFM
      ▪   Funding Not Ringfenced or addition to caps

  ▪   Administration is disjointed and unfamiliar with
      technology

▪ Working Example if intentions are
  credible
  ▪   Low Emission Slurry Spreading (LESS) Model
      ▪   Not competing with TAMS
      ▪   €80,000 TAMS limit not applicable
      ▪   Still ran through the DAFM
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What we learned through the project
as a whole

▪ Buy in and appetite in the farming
  community
▪ Multi-company and cross industry
  co-operation
▪ Grant processes currently marketing
  window dressing vs a credible incentive
  towards change in the sector

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Thank you
For more information, you can contact me
at gary.connolly@activ8energies.com