PepsiCo Ireland has completed a €2.4 million rooftop solar panel installation at its facility in Little Island, Co. Cork.
The project – which will significantly reduce the amount of electricity that the facility uses – commenced in 2023.
The company subsequently finalised the project in August 2024.
In total, there are over 34,000 individual solar panels on the installation.
The solar PV system has added 1625kVA generation capacity to the plant, which will provide 100% of its energy requirements while running during the peak summer months.
Through this investment of €2.4 million, the solar PV system will deliver over 20% of the plant’s annual electricity on demand.
Project
The roof-mounted installation covers 6,800 square metres – close to 40% of the plant’s total roof area.
The project was identified as both a sustainability and efficiency opportunity by utilising the renewable energy potential of the site, as well as providing cost savings by offsetting against the current electricity imports from the grid.
The system generated 77,634kWh of energy through the month of August – the equivalent of 220 households’ monthly electricity use.
This was a partial capacity, as Phase Two of the system came online halfway through the month.
‘Heart Of Our Work’
This installation is the latest investment by PepsiCo to embed sustainability across its operations, as part of its PepsiCo Positive (pep+) transformation.
This latest investment also coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Little Island facility opening in 1974.
Speaking about the project, the site director at PepsiCo Little Island, Brian Colgan, said, “In 2021, PepsiCo launched our pep+ strategy.
“[It] changed how we view and do business.
“Today’s announcement of our Little Island site’s rooftop solar panel installation, which is one of the largest, globally, for PepsiCo, is the latest example of our commitment to ensuring that sustainability and social impact are at the heart of our work.”
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