OREANDA-NEWS. A group of engineers from SSE have installed energy efficiency measures to a small group of homes situated on a remote island off the coast of the Isle of Mull.

As part of a wider programme to install energy efficiency measures like new heating systems and wall insulation, the team of engineers had to think outside the box when figuring out how to actually get its equipment onto the island of Ulva.

Alex Cranston, Project Manager from SSE, said: “At SSE we’re used to working in remote areas, its part of our heritage so we see jobs like this as our bread and butter – even if they’re far from simple!

“The Island does not have a standard ferry so we had to charter a special boat to deliver the equipment and use local resources to transport it from the harbour to the homes.

“It took a lot of planning, and thankfully it all went according to plan, but we couldn’t have managed it without the help of the local community so we would really like to thank the home owners and the local community for all their help with the installation.”

Moray Finch from Mull and Iona Community Trust said: “We’d like to thank the team from SSE for installing the equipment because it certainly wasn’t a straight forward job. With the new energy efficiency measures in place the homeowners will see their bills drop and have more comfortable homes.”

One of the home owners who lives on Ulva said: “I know full well that getting to the island can be tricky at the best of times so the team did a great job getting all that equipment over here. I’d like to thank them for their efforts; it has certainly made a difference to our home.”

The installations were part of a wider ?60m programme to help tackle fuel poverty in Scotland.  The scheme is designed to help improve energy efficiency and make homes warmer, more environmentally friendly and cheaper to heat. 

SSE is working with 11 local authorities across Scotland to help roll out the programme. The funding for the scheme comes from the Scottish Government’s Home Energy Efficiency Programme for Scotland (HEEPS) and SSE (also known as Scottish Hydro) under its Energy Company Obligations (ECO).