The Business Energy of Running Farms

With the ever-increasing cost of electricity and gas, the profitability of the essential business of farming, becomes increasingly difficult to maintain. The cost of energy amounts to about 10% of a farm’s expenses, and it is the one area which can most feasibly have its costs cut.

It is important when assessing the overall energy use on the farm, to include the dwelling and surrounding buildings. But then look at all the other areas of energy-consumption. These may vary according to the type of farm, but basically they will include motors of various types, lighting and fuel for transportation on the farm. Irrigation is a very significant user of energy.

Amongst the measures that can be used to reduce costs in the buildings are: insulation of ceilings, double-glazing of windows, and the use of low-energy lighting instead of incandescent bulbs. These measures can be used in the house, as well as other buildings on the farm. For example, it is beneficial to maintain warmth and light for any breeding animals, whether they be cows, sheep, pigs, horses or chickens. The productivity and survival will be higher, and the costs lower.

With farming it is usually especially feasible to look to environmentally friendly means of producing energy, which means being able to use renewable energy sources as much as possible. The best known of these being sun, water and wind. Solar energy is well-established for heating water, and from there, heating the entire building. However, solar energy is also very effective for the production of electricity, which can be used for all the different requirements on the farm. Wind turbines are extremely efficient at producing electricity, and running water, as in a river, has long been used for the same purpose. The use of any of these methods of energy-generation will dramatically reduce the cost of electricity to the farm. They can be expensive to install, but with the savings they produce, they pay for themselves in 1-2 years.

There are areas which work with a Net-Metering system. This works differently from the regular metering of energy consumption by the customer. It is able to measure the amount of electricity both to and from the customer and the supplier. This works over a grid, and any farmer within that grid can actually sell energy back to the supplier. So that if a farmer is, in fact able to produce more electricity than he uses, this can become a source of profit.

By using whichever means are most suitable to the specific farm, the cost of the business energy use of the farm can be reduced significantly enough to allow the farm to be profitable and sustainable.

Further saving can be made with a switch of energy providers therefore it’s important to consider PCM Switch to do a price comparison, we offer a free service, impartial in our recommendation to ensure that you the customer will save up to 70% on your energy bills. Contact PCM Switch Today.