A 3.5 MW commercial rooftop solar system has been installed on a new automated distribution centre (ADC) built by supermarket retail giant, the Coles Group.
In another step toward it’s 100% renewable electricity by 2025 target, the installation of a 3.5 MW rooftop solar system at its Kemps Creek, Western Sydney ADC, is part of a $1 billion (USD 66 million) investment by the company to improve efficiencies.
Located 40 kilometres from Sydney, the 66,000 square metre building houses automated technology to enable four million cartons per week to be processed to service 229 stores in New South Wales (NSW) and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).
The solar array is one of the largest rooftop solar solutions in the Coles network and mirrors its first ADC built in Queensland in 2023 at the Goodman Redbank Motorway Estate, which also features a 3.5 MW rooftop solar system.
The Coles Group’s new 66,000 square metre automated distribution centre at Kemps Creek in western Sydney is fitted with 3.5 MW rooftop solar.
Image: Jeremy Piper
Coles Group Chief Executive Officer Leah Weckert said the opening of a second solar-powered ADC marks a key milestone on the company’s roadmap to enhance their supply chain and improve their operating efficiency.
Coles has signed a three-year agreement with Australian retailer Origin Energy to co-invest in solar, batteries and flexible load controls across its stores nationally.
Three additional solar systems are expected to be brought online in 2024 and 2025, including a 300 kWV / 420 MWh system at its Chef Fresh facility in NSW, and two large scale arrays on their Western Australia and NSW chilled distribution centres.
By mid-2023, 88 Coles supermarkets had solar panels installed, generating 12,720 MWh or renewable energy and at a dry goods distribution centre in NSW at Oakdale, 90 kilometres southwest of Sydney, a 3.5 MW system were installed comprising 7,000 solar panels and supplying 32% of electricity for the facility.
The Coles Group has long-term large-scale generation certificate agreements with renewable developers France-headquartered Neoen and Engie, Spain-headquartered Acciona Energia, and Origin Energy, sourcing from solar and wind farms in NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland.
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