A manufacturing firm is trebling its solar generation capacity after striking a deal with St Edmundsbury Borough Council.

Family -owned specialist printing company Denny Bros, which makes Fix-a-Form multi-page labels, is installing a 100 kilowatt array. Last year, it installed 200 solar panels which create 50kw of energy.

The second phase is expected to be fully operational by the end of June and generate enough electricity to power 21 homes.

The firm worked closely with St Edmundsbury Borough Council to develop a ‘West Suffolk Solar for Business’ agreement, and the latest installation will be the first under the new scheme.

Under the deal, the first of its kind in West Suffolk, the firm leases its roof in return for cheap electricity generated by council-installed and maintained solar panels.

Councillor Peter Stevens, St Edmundsbury Borough council Cabinet member for operations, said: “We are delighted to be working with Denny Brothers on the first of what we hope will be many projects with West Suffolk businesses and community groups.

“We have considerable experience in solar and took the decision to help local organisations by using our skills and funding to allow them to access the same benefits.”

The initiative means that the firm will produce about a fifth of the electricity it needs from solar power.

The firm’s managing director Graham Denny said: “Our reputation is very important to us and we want a social conscience to be a key factor in determining how we run our business.

“We have operated an ISO 14001 compliant environmental management System since 2008 and now have green policies embedded in everything we do. Reducing waste in all its forms is a key objective for us as is driving down our carbon footprint.”

Initiatives at the Green 100 firm include a substantial reduction in landfill waste achieved by separating waste streams and recycling, and making office lighting more energy efficient with the replacement of fluorescent lamps with LED panels which are sensor-controlled.

Quality manager Julian Colman said the firm would benefit from lower electricity bills while the council would generate an income from the Government’s clean energy subsidy, the feed-in tariff.