North Star Solar is a new player in the solar power sector, with a unique approach to solar installation. Focusing on the social housing sector, North Star has vowed to help alleviate UK fuel poverty by installing solar PV on roofs of social homes, cutting tenants electricity bills by 35-50% effective immediately. Current low interest rates means that North Star can securitise the roofs creating bonds that attract pension fund investors at highly competitive rates. With funding rates as they are, North Star Solar is able to install roofs for free for all tenants in social housing areas, install close to 100% of any roof portfolio, and make it economically viable in places as far north as Scotland.
Fuel poverty is a national crisis, one that needs immediate attention. Winter deaths, people who die because they are unable to heat their homes during the cold winter months is part of a national conversation about energy accessibility. According to the Department of Energy and Climate Change in their 2014 Fuel Poverty Report, approximately 2.4 million households in the UK suffer from fuel poverty. That is one in ten homes. The number is staggering and unacceptable.
Solar panel installation is a logical answer to this crisis, one that is also economically viable at the same time. “Whichever way you look at it, the number of fuel-poor homes is disastrously high, especially for a G7 nation. By offering free solar installation to tenants in social homes, we hope to make a difference in this crisis while also running a viable business. Social entrepreneurship is the way forward,” said Peter Sermol, co-founder of North Star Solar. “Let’s stop hearing that the elderly and vulnerable have to make the decision between food or heat. It’s enough.”
