First Minister, Peter Robinson, is joining forces with one of Northern Ireland's leading renewable energy providers, Amber Green Solar, to officially open a new City learning hub dedicated to solar energy.

On Monday, October 29, the doors to Northern Ireland’s dedicated solar energy hub will open at a new retail unit where live demonstrations modules will be used to show how electricity is generated.

Solar Hub 1, being opened by Amber Green Solar, is a one stop learning shop where members of the public can drop by and see at first-hand how solar panels can be used to generate free electricity.

Mr Robinson, who will officially open the hub at 379 Beersbridge Road, Belfast, at 11am, alongside Upper Bann MP David Simpson, will view live demonstrations. After the official opening takes place, the hub doors will open to other dignitaries who can enjoy live demonstrations.

Amber Green Solar, a division of Amber Green Energy, installs Solar Panels, Solar PV [Photovoltaics] to generate free electricity and Solar Thermal to generate free hot water.

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The company’s chief executive, Dwyer O’Neill, said Amber Green Solar took the decision to open a city hub to create a learning environment which is accessible, welcoming and educational.

Mr O'Neill said: "Energy costs continue to rise and every household and every business in Northern Ireland are suffering from rising energy bills. We have found that more and more people are seeking alternative methods of generating electricity.

"Amber Green Solar is experiencing a rising number of calls from homeowners, businesses and commercial premises owners, who are seeking ways to combat the rising bills by adopting a more sustainable way of generating energy to prevent current energy costs from damaging their businesses.

"We have listened to our client’s feedback and one common theme in what they have been saying is that there is a lack of practical knowledge out there about how solar panels actually work.

"As a result, we felt it entirely appropriate to create a learning hub where people can walk in off the street and see for themselves how solar panels can benefit their lives.

"We will be delighted to welcome First Minister Peter Robinson and MP David Simpson to the hub. Amber Green believes there is great work going on at the Assembly in relation to promoting green energy in Northern Ireland and we support the incentives offered to encourage the uptake of these greener renewable technologies."

As energy costs continue to rise in Northern Ireland, Solar panels and photovoltaic installation is becoming vastly popular at domestic, business and commercial levels. The Energy Saving Trust has calculated that, if a system is eligible for the ROCs scheme, households could earn approximately £670 per year depending on size and efficiency of the system.

(CD)