News from Keele University

Pioneering renewable energy park officially opened at Keele University

A pioneering renewable energy park at Keele University producing up to 50% of the campus’ electricity has been officially opened at a ceremony this week.

The Low Carbon Energy Generation park, built in partnership with low-carbon technology specialists EQUANS, features an array of 12,500 solar panels and two wind turbines, which generate clean, renewable energy for the Keele campus and neighbouring communities.

With combined battery storage, the site supplies up to 50% of the campus’ electricity requirements, and any excess energy generated is fed back into the local power grid to serve neighbouring local communities, passing the benefit on to them.

The park is linked to a Smart Energy Network Demonstrator (SEND), a state-of-the-art real-time energy management system designed and installed in partnership with SIEMENS UK, which optimises the balancing of generation, distribution, demand and storage across the campus.

The SEND provides a genuine “living laboratory” for testing smart energy technologies, a setting for professional development in new approaches to sustainable energy management, and research & innovation projects with local supply chains.

The park was officially opened this week by Keele’s outgoing Chancellor Sir Jonathan Porritt in his final Keele engagement, alongside Professor Zoe Robinson – Director of Keele’s Institute for Sustainable Futures, and Chris Langdon from EQUANS – who delivered the energy park.

Keele University commended for outstanding research quality in national assessment

Keele University’s role as a centre for outstanding, world-class research has been reaffirmed today in the UK-wide Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021).

REF 2021 was jointly conducted by the four UK higher education funding bodies, which every seven years assess the quality, impact, and environment that supports research in higher education institutions in the UK.

REF 2021 results for Keele indicate a 75% increase in the volume of world-leading research across the University compared to the last REF in 2014, with 80% of Keele’s research being classified as either world-leading or internationally excellent (4* or 3* rated research).

For the 2021 exercise Keele’s submissions also saw a 25% increase in the number of staff submitted, reflecting its continued growth as a genuine research-led university, which places an equal emphasis on excellence in both research and education.