Operational sustainability is a core focus at Yealands, whose aim is to be one of the world’s most sustainable wineries. A commitment to ongoing emissions reduction and the ultimate goal of energy self-sufficiency meant solar was as an obvious addition to the facility. The challenge was to install a large solar array without significant capital investment and disruption to the winery’s daily operations.
Vector Powersmart worked with Yealands to design and deliver a solar photovoltaic (PV) array, covering the entire northern roof of the winery building, which generated enough clean electricity at the time of installation to offset approximately 30% of Yealands’ annual electricity consumption from the grid. The project was financed under a private scale solar power purchase agreement (PPA). Rather than paying for the system upfront, Yealands purchases the generated electricity for an agreed rate over 20 a year period. The system is owned, operated and maintained by Vector Powersmart.
The PPA with Vector Powersmart provides Yealands with electricity price certainty and a hedge against volatile market electricity prices while avoiding any upfront capital investment. The solar PV array enables Yealands to realise the environmental and marketing benefits of commercial solar without the maintenance responsibilities.
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