Treasury Wine Estates solar boost at its Barossa Valley plant in line with the company's net-zero ambitions
Solar panels at Treasury Wines Estates flagship production plant in South Australia's Barossa Valley, as part of the company's net zero ambition.
Nearly 6,000 solar panels activated in 2023 by Treasury Wines Estates, owner of the Penfolds brand, at its flagship production plant in the Barossa Valley moved the international company closer to being 100% powered by renewable energy.
With another solar installation at the company’s Karadoc winery near Mildura also coming on line in 2023, Treasury Wines Estates said it now operated the largest solar network of all wine producers in Australia, generating more than 5500MWh of electricity a year – the equivalent of powering 900 homes.
Treasury Wines Estates, also owning brands such as Wolf Blass, Pepperjack and Squealing Pig, had a global target to transition to 100% renewable electricity by 2024 and net zero carbon emissions by 2030. The company was installing 13,000 solar panels across its Unites States of America production sites, including at its Beaulieu Vineyard, Beringer Vineyards, Etude Winery, and Frank Family Vineyards in Napa Valley.
Treasury Wines Estates chief supply & sustainability officer Kerrin Petty said installing solar panels was the most significant contribution the company could make in its move to net zero: “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. The company’s Napa Valley, California, installation of 13,000 solar panels will make it the largest winery solar system in the USA, generating half the electricity needs for each of our US wineries."
Batteries and electric vehicle chargers for fleet, employees and visitor cars were next on the agenda as part of Treasury Wines Estates' net zero push.
A $165 million expansion of the Barossa Valley winery, near Nuriootpa, was completed in 2022, expanding the company’s premium winemaking capacity by about one third. The site houses the company’s largest bottling operation, packaging up to 216 million bottles a year, and was also at the centre of Treasury Wines Estates foray into no- and low-alcohol wine.
As part of a $10 million investment, the company was expected to be operating and low- alcohol production plant at its Barossa Valley site in 2024. The company had developed proprietary technology that uses a vacuum to gently remove the alcohol content to less than 0.05 per cent, before flavour compounds were reintroduced at the end of the process.
