Treasury Wine Estates (TWE) unveils Australia’s largest winery solar installation, putting them on track to meet their 2024 renewable energy target.
The installation features almost 6,000 solar panels that are expected to generate more than 5,500 megawatt-hours of electricity per year at the wine producer’s Barossa Winery and Production Centre in South Australia, where iconic wines including Penfolds, Wynns, Squealing Pig and Pepperjack are produced.
TWE’s goal of using 100 per cent renewable energy by the end of 2024 was promoted by the urgency to decarbonise TWE’s global operations, said Kerrin Petty, Chief Supply & Sustainability Officer at TWE.
Speaking at the official launch alongside Member for Schubert Ashton Hurn MP, Petty said: “Installing solar panels is the most significant contribution we can make to move closer to our ambition of net zero direct emissions.
“Unveiling the solar system here in the Barossa complements the other systems that are already operational, or scheduled to be completed in the coming year, at our sites in Australia, New Zealand, France, Italy, and the US.
“Our Napa Valley, California installation of 13,000 solar panels will make it the largest winery solar system in the US, generating half the electricity needs for each of our US wineries. It’s all part of TWE’s broader goal to make wine sustainably,” he said.
The Barossa installation has been designed to maximise the capacity of the regional renewable electricity infrastructure, generating enough electricity to power 900 homes each year, and complements TWE’s other solar installations at Coldstream Hills in Victoria’s Yarra Valley, Penfolds in South Australia’s Magill and Wynns in Coonawarra, South Australia.
TWE said the investment in solar panels is a “foundational investment” that allows the company to manage its electricity consumption globally, saying the next step will include batteries and electric vehicle chargers for fleet, employees and visitor cars.
Image: Ashton Hurn MP (Member for Schubert), Scott Hazeldine (Barossa Australia) and Kerrin Petty (TWE).
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