Warilla Bowls & Recreation Club

Warilla Bowls & Recreation Club is one of the largest Club facilities in the Illawarra region. The club initially installed 100kW in 2014 to test the viability of solar and take advantage of an upfront STC rebate, the board closely monitored the solar generation and enjoyed the reduction in energy bills. In 2017, the club experienced an energy price increase of 50%. In a region traditionally experiencing cheap energy, this was an unexpected jump from previous trends and added $250K to the club’s operation costs.

 

Anastasi from Smart Commercial Solar collaborated with the Club and their environmental consultant to develop the largest solar system on a club in NSW. The bulk of the modules were to be installed on the indoor bowling green, this was architecturally designed with severe curves on the East and West. Engineers from Smart and racking manufacturers worked together to design a seamless array that matched the roof profile with maximum panel density. The Large Generator Certificate (LGC) revenue significantly reduces the system cost, delivering $75K of combined annual savings.

 

The Club has entered a 5 Year ‘locked in’ term with their LGC trader, reducing the risk of trade pricing over the payback term. Trina DuoMax are frameless ‘glass on glass’ modules. The glass panels avoid grime build up on the frame and seamlessly wrap the roof in solar. Solar Analytics monitoring provides detailed feedback of 16 SMA inverters and an easy customer access.