In December 2024, Smart Ease funded one of our largest projects to date in the UK – a cutting edge solar and storage system for boutique 4-star destination, and this year’s winner of Visit York’s Large Hotel of the Year award, Sandburn Hall.
Set on a stunning 1,000-acre estate in North Yorkshire, Sandburn Hall offers 40 luxury guest rooms, an 18-hole golf course, and a proudly Yorkshire restaurant, all surrounded by beautiful woodlands and lakes.
In August 2024, the Sandburn Hall management team began exploring solar as a way to better align their operations with their values. Their motivations were twofold: sustainability and rising energy costs.
As a Green Tourism award-winner, Sandburn Hall is deeply committed to sustainable practices. The estate is home to a thriving ecosystem, including Griffon Forest, where guests may spot local wildlife such as deer, badgers and owls. A solar investment would allow the business to significantly reduce its carbon emissions, preventing hundreds of tonnes of CO₂ from entering the atmosphere each year.
Project snapshot
Industry: Hospitality
Channel Partner: Zenergy
System size: Total system size – 800kW (600kW funded by Smart Ease)
Equipment:
- 1035x Jinko Bifacial solar panels
- 1x 1mWh Zenergy Grid station containerised solution
Payment Plan term: 5 years
The other driver was cost. As a year-round hotel, hospitality and events venue – with a large golf course to maintain – Sandburn Hall faces substantial energy costs that rise annually.
To find the right solution, the team engaged Smart Ease Channel Partner Zenergy. Zenergy proposed an ambitious 800kWh solar and storage system tailored to the estate’s energy needs and sustainability goals.
To help bring the vision to life without depleting Sandburn Hall’s cash reserves, Zenergy recommended that they consider using a zero upfront Smart Ease Payment Plan to partially cover the cost of the install. This would enable Sandburn Hall to invest in the best solution possible and pay for it over time using the savings generated.
The project kicked off in December 2024 with the installation of 1,035 ground-mounted Jinko Bifacial solar panels paired with a 1mWh Zenergy Grid station containerised solution. The mammoth 800kWh system is expected to generate over 400,000kWh of clean energy annually, helping power everything from Sandburn Hall’s energy-efficient heating and hot water systems to lighting across the grounds and EV chargers at the golf course.
The battery allows for optimal solar self-consumption and further reduces Sandburn Hall’s reliance on the grid, boosting both energy savings and energy resilience.
The projected impact?
- Significant monthly energy bill reductions
- CO₂ savings equivalent to planting more than 20,000 trees or avoiding 2,000+ long-haul flights
Start a conversation with Smart Ease and find out how our Payment Plans can help you generate solar savings