MaltaPost makes €160,000 investment in solar power

MaltaPost reduces its CO2 emissions by 78,000 kg of CO2 per year thanks to €160,000 PV system.

5 August 2013, 12:00am
by Staff Reporter

1 min read

68,200 KW/h of electricity were generated between August 2012 and June 2013.

MaltaPost has reduced its emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) by approximately 78,000 kg of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year, through an investment of €160,000 in an alternative energy solution system of 216 photovoltaic panels on the roof of the Company's new extension of its Marsa Head Office.

"As one of Malta's largest organisations, MaltaPost has the responsibility to contribute positively to society. Through this significant investment in photovoltaic panels and Solar Films, MaltaPost aims to minimise its impact on the local environment by reducing its carbon footprint," MaltaPost's CEO Joseph Gafa' said.

He added that investing in energy generating systems allowed the company to maintain its competitiveness in order to continue improving its services.

The grid connected photovoltaic (PV) generation units convert sunlight directly into electricity without creating any emission and will generate approximately 88,300 KW/h per year.

The generated electricity will therefore reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the air whilst reducing the demand on Malta's electricity services provider (EneMalta), currently running entirely on fossil fuels.

MaltaPost's PV system has a total rated power of 60.48 KW which between August 2012 and June 2013 generated around 68,200 KW/h of energy.

The units generated were exported into the general distribution system, for which MaltaPost gained €0.21/unit as per the feed-in tariff contract with the local electricity services provider (EneMalta).

This amounted to €14,322 which totals to 11% savings or approximately just over a month worth of electricity.

Furthermore, MaltaPost has installed a Solar Film on the company's south facing windows. The film was installed with the intention of substantially reducing the intensity of direct sunlight entering the offices especially during the summer months.

By installing this film, 57% of the solar energy coming through the office windows will be reflected thus reducing electricity demand from the air-conditioning units.