There have been many innovations in the energy sector over the past decade — some revolutionary, others more niche.

That innovation shows no sign of slowing down. A new wind and solar unit, designed to sit on top of streetlights or poles, has recently been launched in Ireland, and it could well have a role to play on farms.

We caught up with Vincent McConnell, Sales Manager at Waveform 360, at the recent SEAI Energy Show to learn more. He explained that the Waveform 360 unit generates power using six vertical-axis wind blades and solar panels, and is designed to take up no ground space in doing so. Developed in Scotland, the units can generate between 150 – 350 watts of electricity and is suitable for both on- and off-grid applications.

He explained that the unit could be used to power remote farm devices such as electric fences, soil sensors, CCTV cameras, base stations, water pumps and more.

While the company hasn’t yet had many installations in agriculture, McConnell said they are busy with commercial projects around Ireland.

He added that the unit offers more than just power generation — each one can be customised to include lighting, a range of sensors, batteries or other devices including cloud management that might be useful on a farm.

However, with a price tag of between €3,000 and €4,000 depending on the configuration, the unit would likely need to be eligible for the TAMS grant (40%–60%) to become financially viable for widespread use by farmers.