Amsterdam Pirates go green

Dutch hoofdklasse baseball club Amsterdam Pirates have decided to go green as they have installed solar panels on the roof fo their clubhouse. By installing these solar panels, the club will save quite some money and become less dependent on the power companies.

When asked, the club secretary explained what made Pirates, of which the flagship team operates under the name of L&D Amsterdam Pirates, decide to do so. The previous heater needed to be replaced. That was a good moment to acquire a durable source of energy. Of course, the fact that those solar panels will be a big money saver was another argument to do so. According to the secretary, the club wants to bind its members by going green. By installing these solar panels, the club can get rid of gas, of which the use costs a lot more than the use of electricity.

The light towers do not run on the power that is provided by the solar panels because it is not possible yet to store the energy that is produced by the panels. But the heating of the clubhouse and the showers is running on the solar panels. The next step is to replace the current light bulbs in the light towers by led lights, this in cooperation with the municipality of Amsterdam.

The club uses a total of 145,000 kWh per year, while the solar panels produce 80,000 kWh. With the led lights in the light towers, the club will save more for sure. On the question when the club will earn back the investment, the secretary said that the break-even point will be after one year. In the second year and beyond the club will start to make money.

On the video you see the new infield, completely made of Astroturf, the club installed for the 2018 season. This new infield will save the club some money as well, as the maintenance is a lot cheaper than the maintenance of grass. Another reason to install Astroturf was that the chance of rainouts will be reduced.

By turning to solar panels, Amsterdam Pirates will likely be the greenest baseball club in the Netherlands.