We’ve secured a revolutionary deal with energy company EDF Renewables to help power railway stations and offices using solar energy.
It’s an important step in helping us become a more sustainable and greener railway for you.
A ground-breaking deal
The first-of-its-kind deal agrees that EDF Renewable will give us 64GWh of clean energy at a fixed cost every year for the next 14 years. This will provide about 15% of the electricity needed to power our offices, depots and stations we directly manage.
It’s significant step in our plans to become a greener, more sustainable railway that minimises its use of fossil fuels. The amount of clean energy the deal will give us is vast. Just one year of the clean energy the deal gives will be enough to power London Liverpool Street station for nine years. Plus, the amount of energy we’ll receive over the 14-year contract is enough to power all our 20 of the stations we manage for eight years.
Jeremy Westlake, chief financial officer at Network Rail, said: “This contract, the first of its kind for the railway, shows how organisations like Network Rail can use their buying power to drive investment in clean power generation for the country.”
EDF Renewables will now start work to build their solar facility at Bloy’s Grove, near Swainsthorpe in Norfolk – in sight of the East Coast Main Line.
A greener railway
The new solar farm could help save about 60,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions over its lifetime. We’d need to plant about 2.2 million trees to save the same amount.
The agreement is also a crucial step towards our commitment to achieve a net-zero emissions railway by 2050. This is part of our Greener Railway Strategy to build a more sustainable railway that plays its part in tackling the global climate crisis. Plus, we hope to strike a further deal to move all of the electrical requirements of our offices, depots and managed stations to solar power in the next few years.
Jo Lewington, chief environment and sustainability officer at Network Rail, said: “Travelling by train is already one of the most sustainable ways of getting around and we know we can do more as a business. In future we would like all of our office and station power to come from sustainable sources and this contract is a huge step forward towards that.”
Rail Minister Lord Hendy said: “We are working with partners across the rail industry to build a modern transport network with our environmental commitments at the heart.
“The Government’s Plan for Change is driving economic growth, transitioning the country to sustainable energy, and securing jobs. Under our new integrated approach, we are ensuring the British rail industry remains at the forefront of innovation and improvement.”
Millions of people and goods make their journeys across our railway every year and we want to keep delivering the greenest, cleanest form of travel. This deal will help us in our journey.
