Co-op will utilise 100% of the electricity produced from Coldham solar farm for its estate, including food stores, distribution centres and Funeralcare homes right across the UK, over a 15-year period, to increase energy security and accelerate its path towards decarbonisation.
ScottishPower Renewables will be supplying Co-op with a peak capacity of 9MW of clean energy - enough to power around 55 Co-op food stores, or the equivalent of 2,000 homes.
Charlie Jordan, CEO, ScottishPower Renewables said: "We're delighted to partner with companies that understand the importance of decarbonising their operations.
"By securing long-term commitments, PPAs provide stability, certainty, and ultimately accelerate our journey towards a greener, more resilient energy landscape."
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The Coldham solar farm has been developed as part of ScottishPower Renewables' organic pipeline. It's co-located with SPR's existing Coldham windfarm and benefits from existing efficiencies with the site in terms of land, grid connections and other operating elements.
Shirine Khoury-Haq, Chief Executive of the Co-op, said: "The launch of Coldham solar farm, as a result of our PPA with ScottishPower Renewables, shows Co-op's commitment to achieving net zero. This agreement means more renewable energy will be generated, and in doing so increase energy security, boost economic development and help us achieve net zero in our own operations by 2035."
Not only is Coldham solar farm helping Co-op to decarbonise, ScottishPower Renewables is hopeful the site will provide a wide range of resources for local wildlife to prosper having planted 7,500 native trees and a diverse mix of grassland plants.
Coldham is one of a number of ScottishPower Renewables' large-scale clean energy developments in the East Anglia region.
In addition to SPR's flagship East Anglia ONE offshore windfarm – operational since 2020 – there are three additional offshore windfarms in construction or development as part of the East Anglia Hub.
These will deliver a combined capacity of over 3.6GW of green electricity – enough to power the equivalent of more than 3.5 million homes for the next 25 years. Added to ScottishPower's 100MW green hydrogen project at the Port of Felixstowe, these projects will contribute significantly to the UK economy and create jobs and supply chain opportunities, as well as increasing the energy security of the country.
