Liberty Two Degrees’ Eastgate Shopping Centre now boasts South Africa’s largest registered roof solar installation, scheduled for completion during Q3 2024.
The super regional mall’s sustainable journey began in 2020 with the first phase of its solar system commissioned which consisted of a 1MW [AC] or 1.219MWp solar power installation, resulting in an energy saving of 1.910MWh during 2023.
As part of its second phase, the mall has actively expanded its renewable energy capacity with the addition of a 5MW [AC] or 5.997MWp solar power installation. In total, the mall now has almost 13 675 solar panels, equating to 35.04% of the energy required to run its daily load.
The solar installation covers most of the mall’s available roof space, an area of approximately 28 100m², representing SA’s largest registered rooftop installation when considering both phases combined which generate a total of 6MW [AC] or 7.216MWp in solar power.
“This innovation in renewable energy generation at Eastgate is testament to L2D’s position in environmental leadership. L2D is proud to lead many firsts in this space,” comments Brian Unsted, L2D Sustainability Lead.
“This is a significant achievement attributable to a collective effort from our property team, professional consultants, service providers as well as through our tenants’ support and co-operation. L2D prides itself on collaborating with the best in the industry to achieve its Net Zero Carbon targets. What also makes this achievement noteworthy is the fact that due to the reduced reliance on the grid, Eastgate will see an estimated reduction of 10.9 tons of CO² emissions per year, for both phase one and two combined. We are very proud to have achieved this milestone towards L2D’s Net Zero Carbon journey,” says Melinda Isaacs, L2D’s Developments Executive.
Eastgate is one of few centres in its catchment area that is currently fully functional during load shedding.
The professional consultant and contract partners on the solar project included Acost Quantity Surveyors, Batley Partners Architects, Comprac, Concor Construction, MNS Engineering, Origin Project Managers, SOLINK, Solareff and Zutari.
