In order to significantly increase on-site renewable energy capacity, Univar Solutions announced the installation of solar panels and an energy storage system at its facility in California, USA.
Univar Solutions Inc. announced it will install 1020kW of solar capacity and an energy storage system (ESS) with total energy capacity of 375kW/753kWh at its City of Commerce, CA facility in partnership with Motive Energy. This partnership marks a further investment by Univar Solutions in on-site renewable energy generation capacity, having recently completed solar projects at other global facilities in Europe and Latin America.
The project, which is expected to be completed during 2022, will help Univar Solutions significantly reduce the non-renewable energy usage and emissions: the installation will remove more than 1,300 tons of carbon dioxide from the environment per year, equivalent to removing 259 cars from the road or the electricity usage of 217 homes annually. This change represents a further step towards achieving Univar’s long-term Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) goal of 20% absolute reduction of Scope 1 and 2 carbon dioxide emissions by 2025.
"As part of our ambitions to achieve our ESG goals, Univar Solutions has committed to invest significantly in climate change reduction," said Jen McIntyre, chief people & culture officer and executive ESG lead at Univar Solutions. "Our partnership with Motive Energy, which will reduce emissions and costs at one of our major U.S. facilities, is another important proof point in our journey to transforming our operations with low-carbon enabling technologies. We look forward to continuing to invest in solar energy for our other sites around the world to reduce our carbon footprint in line with our net zero commitment."
"This project marks another important milestone toward achieving Univar Solutions' 2025 ESG goals and commitment to reach net-zero emissions by 2050," commented Liam McCarroll, director of sustainability at Univar Solutions. "Univar Solutions' driving purpose is to keep our communities healthy, fed, clean, and safe, and recognizing the importance of carbon reduction is central to supporting the wellbeing of communities around the world. We are excited to be partnering with an innovative company like Motive Energy to transform how we generate and store electricity at the City of Commerce facility as part of our ongoing efforts to create a positive impact to our emissions reductions while also providing attractive economic returns on our investments."
The project will utilize Motive Energy's Watt.io Energy Storage System and the CodeWatt software suite to build a Microgrid at the Univar Solutions facility.
"Motive Energy's unique capabilities in providing full engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) services in conjunction with its proprietary CodeWatt Energy Management System allows customers to benefit from the advancements made in renewable energy technologies," said Yogesh Singh, general manager vice president for Motive Energy. "This is self-evident at the Univar Solutions facilities in Southern California where the Solar Photovoltaic (PV) + ESS Microgrid being built will allow a leading chemical distribution facility to offset significant amounts of its energy usage. It will reduce their energy bills in meaningful ways and add resiliency to the operation. Our post construction operations and maintenance (O&M) services will also allow Univar Solutions to focus on its operations without having to worry about energy related issues."