Stockland Caloundra switches on solar
Stockland Caloundra is celebrating the official ‘switch on’ of a new $531,000 rooftop solar system recently installed to provide clean, green, renewable energy to the centre.
The 250 KW solar PV system installed by Verdia consists of approx. 650 solar Photo-Voltaic (PV) panels which will cover a roof surface area of approximately 1,300 square metres.
On average, the system will generate 400,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) per annum – enough to power 73 homes1 and 24 per cent of the centre’s annual building power requirements.
Shane Monro, Centre Manager Stockland Caloundra, said: “We are very excited to celebrate the ‘switch on’ of our new solar project at Stockland Caloundra. We’ve listened to the wants and needs of our customers and are proud to be investing in renewable energy and leading the industry towards a more sustainable future.”
The Caloundra installation forms part of Stockland’s national retail solar rollout, Australia’s largest ever retail property solar program. Stockland has committed to a $23.5 million national investment in solar, and is currently installing more than 39,000 Photo-Voltaic (PV) panels, comparable in size to more than 9 rugby fields, across ten retail centres around the country. Combined, the project is expected to produce 17.2 GWh of energy every year, the equivalent to driving an electric car around the world 2,381 times. The rollout will add to Stockland’s existing solar capacity to deliver a total of 14.56MW by 2020.
Davina Rooney, General Manager, Sustainability at Stockland, said: “Our investment in sustainability initiatives like solar provide a number of environmental benefits and positively impact local communities by creating more employment opportunities. We truly believe in the ability for sustainable practices to change the energy landscape in Australia and this new solar system installation is an important step in that direction.
“We’ve already invested more than $4.5 million in successful solar projects at four of our shopping centres in NSW and hope to continue rolling out solar installations at all viable centres across our portfolio.”
Stockland owns and manages the most Green Star rated Shopping centres in Australia (Design & As Built) and has Australia’s first retail portfolio with a Green Star Performance rating.
1 Based on 35 occupants per household, www.energymadeeasy.gov.au/benchmark
