Orchard Street is a leading commercial property investment management firm, focused on the UK market and acting on behalf of institutional clients world-wide to advise on investing in and the active management of UK commercial property assets.

Established in 2004, Orchard Street operates across a range of industry sectors including retail, offices, industrial and warehouses and has a consistent track record of investment outperformance for each of its funds. The organisation currently has assets under discretionary management in excess of £4 billion.

In November 2022, Orchard Street announced the launch and first close of its inaugural Impact Fund, Orchard Street Social and Environmental Impact Partnership (SEIP). The Fund aims to target value-add real estate investment opportunities with the potential to generate a measurable social and environmental impact. Specifically, it focused on the three impact areas, including; decarbonising existing buildings via an accelerated programme of refurbishment, investing in local communities, and making buildings healthier for those that live and work in them, for example through improving air quality, access to green space and wellness amenities.

Orchard Street approached Solarsense to assess the feasibility of installing solar panels at a number of their sites within their property portfolio. One of the sites included the Lidl supermarket site in Slough.

After a period of consultation, The Lidl supermarket site was deemed a perfect case for installing a solar PV system to both improve the sites carbon footprint and reduce its operating costs. The store’s 550 solar panels with a capacity of 214kWp will generate 171,930kWh of clean electricity annually, fulfilling a substantial portion of the store’s energy needs and contributing to the local grid, whilst mitigating more than 47 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year.

As consumers have become more conscious of their purchasing behaviour and its impact on the environment, supermarkets have come under added pressure to improve their sustainability credentials. Installing solar was therefore a win-win for both Lidl and Orchard Street. As a tenant the supermarket are able to purchase cheaper, cleaner energy from their landlord and pre-purchase their electricity at a fixed unit price, helping to forecast their long-term energy costs and protect the business against future increases in utility prices or another potential energy crisis.

Learn more: https://www.solarsense-uk.com/casestudies/lidl-supermarket-solar-panels/