CLP builds largest solar source for Dairy Farm

Dairy Farm International is to install a solar panel system at its Wellcome Fresh Food Centre in Tseung Kwan O which will generate 1 million kWh of energy and HK$3 million in revenue a year.

The system, of 2,000 solar panels, is co-developed with CLPe Solutions, a subsidiary of electricity generator CLP (0002). It will be installed on the 14,000-square-meter rooftops of the centre, which processes, packs and delivers products to over 300 Wellcome and Market Place supermarkets in Hong Kong.

The 1 million kWh of renewable energy per year is more than the annual electricity needs of nearly 250 households and is equivalent to the amount of carbon dioxide removed by 16,000 trees annually - roughly about 370 tonnes - the company said. The project is expected to be complete in the second quarter of 2022 and will be the largest in Hong Kong's retail sector under CLP Power's renewable energy feed-in tariff scheme.

CLPe Solutions will offer one-stop services to Dairy Farm covering system design, construction, operations and maintenance. The system will be connected to CLP Power's grid after completion and will generate FiT revenue for Dairy Farm.

Dairy Farm said the warehouse will maintain normal operations during the installation.

"While the proposed solar system with additional metal cladding layer will maintain the Fresh Food Centre indoor temperature, the project will also produce renewable energy for the power system," said Alex Keisser, managing director of CLPe Solutions.

Choo Peng-chee, Dairy Farm's chief executive of North Asia and group convenience said the project "demonstrates how we can adopt environmentally-friendly practices and make our business more sustainable."

Last August, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology launched a renewable energy project that will include the installation of up to 8,000 solar panels at over 50 locations on campus, and will generate up to 3 million kWh of electricity each year.

By joining CLP's FiT scheme, the project will generate around HK$160 million up to the end of the FiT Scheme in 2033.