A Victorian mansion famed for its fairytale 14th century castle has saved £100,000 on its energy bills and cut carbon emissions by more than 400 tons.

Located in Kent, the Scotney Castle (pictured) – owned by the National Trust – installed a 250kW wood-chip biomass boiler to provide hot water and heating to the historic 770-acre estate.

Since its operation in 2010, the biomass boiler, which replaced an old oil-powered heating system, has generated around 1,258,600 kWh of renewable heating and cut more than £20,000 every year from energy bills.

Paul Clark, Managing Director of Rural Energy, which installed the boiler said: “The National Trust has been quick to see the many benefits of biomass technology and how it can slash energy bills and reduce carbon emissions.

“The project at Scotney Castle is a prime example of this. Its biomass boiler is powered by locally sourced wood as part of its conservation and woodland management on the estate and the aim is to be self-sufficient.”

Earlier this year the Government granted planning approval for the construction of a 100MW wood-based biomass power station in Northumberland.