OHM Group Powers Up EV Growth With Rooftop Solar Investment

The Spirit Motor Group, part of OHM Group, a leading automotive distributor and retailer in Ireland, has successfully installed a pilot solar plant at its main Jaguar Land Rover showroom in Dublin. This move is aimed at meeting the growing demand for electric vehicles (EVs) while boosting sustainability. The new rooftop solar system, powered by SolarEdge’s DC-optimized technology, will supply clean, reliable energy to both the Jaguar Land Rover showroom and a newly constructed EV preparation centre on the same site.

The solar system, consisting of 470 panels, is expected to generate around 160MWh of electricity each year. This will cover about 50% of the site’s energy needs, saving the company over €50,000 annually. With these savings, the investment is projected to pay off in under three years. OHM Group, a key distributor and retailer of international automotive and power solutions brands in Ireland, decided to invest in solar energy after experiencing a significant increase in electricity costs.

Gerard O’Farrell, Managing Director of Car Division at OHM Group, said in a statement, “With the motor industry transitioning from ICE to electric vehicles, our business needs have evolved. Our energy usage has gone up by 50% in the last two years alone, and we expect this increase to continue. Installing solar systems will not only support our increased electricity requirements for EV charging but also underscores our commitment to sustainability. Through this project we’re hoping to set a new standard in the automotive industry.”

O’Farrell also mentioned, “As the installation is a pilot for us, before we embark on further solar installations, we wanted to monitor the system closely. The SolarEdge solution has advanced inbuilt monitoring which enables us to identify and address any underperforming modules quickly, streamlining maintenance requirements and enabling us to maximise the uptime of the system.

He further added, “We are incredibly pleased with the results we’ve seen so far. During the summer months, daily generation peaked at more than 1MW on occasions and regularly exceeded 800 kW. Based on these results, we have already begun to plan the roll-out of solar systems on eight more of our showrooms, both at our Dublin site and others located throughout the country.”

The Dublin facility has two solar arrays: 260 solar modules are placed on the Jaguar Land Rover showroom, and another 210 modules are installed on the new EV preparation centre workshop. The quick payback for this project was made possible by using SolarEdge’s advanced DC-optimised inverter technology. Each solar module is paired with a Power Optimizer, which maximises energy production by addressing challenges like dirt, shading, and mismatched modules that can reduce efficiency in traditional systems.

These Power Optimizers also provide detailed data about the performance of each module and the entire system, allowing OHM Group to monitor energy production and consumption in real-time across the two buildings and multiple EV charging stations. To highlight its commitment to sustainability, the company has set up a live feed from the SolarEdge monitoring platform. This feed allows visitors to see the energy generated by the solar system on the Jaguar Land Rover showroom and the corresponding carbon offset.