Dunelm is stepping up its commitment to having lower-impact operations through an acceleration of its extensive solar panel installation project.
This financial year will see 2642 panels installed across Dunelm’s portfolio. The installation of photovoltaic (PV) panels has recently been completed at five stores, including 442 at the Bristol store, 410 at Derby, 356 at Romford and 398 at Swansea. 262 panels have also been installed on the roof at Dunelm’s head office in Syston, Leicester.
The business has plans to install PV panels across another three sites before the end of June which, in total, will produce approximately 337,302kWh of electricity as the business continues to decarbonise its operations.
Despite the expansion of its store portfolio – now at 183 following three recent openings – overall store electricity usage at Dunelm has remained flat, in line with 2019 usage, with 99.7% of energy from renewable sources in the last FY.
Alongside the solar panel project, Dunelm is improving sustainability across its operations, including a focus on energy efficiency across its sites: it transitioned to Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin (REGO)-qualifying electricity sources for the majority of sites in 2019; it is engaging staff to promote energy efficiency; it is replacing gas-fired heating and refrigerants with lower-carbon alternatives; and it has increased the recycling of waste.
Steve Barton, director of property at Dunelm, comments: “We’re very proud to be stepping up the solar panel roll-out across our sites. It’s just one part of our commitment to reducing our environmental impact and in line with our ambition to reach net zero by 2040.”
