Horder Healthcare
Energy made easy: Solar solutions at Horder Healthcare
Horder Healthcare is a leading independent healthcare provider and charity based in Sussex that has been making world-class healthcare accessible for over 60 years. Horder Healthcare’s commitment to promoting wellness in the local community goes beyond delivering traditional healthcare services, with environmental responsibility at the heart of everything they do.
In the last few years, the Horder Healthcare team has made strides towards this, taking concrete steps to reduce their environmental impact. From 2020 to 2024, they were able to reduce their total carbon emissions by 35% by making energy-efficiency enhancements across their sites.
More recently, the Horder Healthcare team, led by then-CEO Richard Tyler, decided to take a major step towards decarbonisation by installing solar at the Horder Centre, the charity’s specialist orthopaedic surgery hospital based in Crowborough.
The solution
Richard invited commercial solar experts JPS Renewables to visit the hospital to assess their facilities and its suitability for solar.
JPS Renewable’s Ross Stevens recalls the complexity of the site.
It was clear that it would require “a complex design and installation owing to the sheer number of varying roof elevations, orientations, pitches, full planning consent requirement, back-up generator integration, and differing types of mounting equipment required to bring this project together.”
In the end, Ross’s technical proposal involved 753 solar panels spread across 30+ configurations on the site’s roof, resulting in a total system size of 323.8kW.
Knowing that this system was large, technically complex and would come with a considerable price tag, Ross suggested that the Horder Healthcare team consider investing in the system through a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), funded by OEGEN and co-developed by Smart Ease and Zestec.
Horder Healthcare by numbers
System size:
323.8kW
System specification:
753 solar panels
PPA term:
25 years
Under a Smart Ease PPA, Horder Healthcare had the solar system installed without any capital outlay, with the PPA rate providing a 55% discount to their current grid tariff and a 12% reduction in electricity costs. The system will be operated and maintained for the full duration of the PPA term by Smart Ease’s PPA co-developer, Zestec.
For Horder Healthcare, the benefits of the PPA were clear:
- £0 upfront spend on the installation
- Hands-off, hassle-free operations and maintenance
- Energy Cost Savings and Carbon Reduction from day 1
Installation of the solar PV system under their PPA agreement began in February 2025.
The win
The system is expected to provide 23% of Horder Healthcare’s electricity needs, resulting in significant energy-bill savings and over 140 tonnes of avoided CO2 emissions.
