Coca-Cola to hit 100 pct renewables in Australia one year early with new contract for NSW solar

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners – purveyor of the world’s most iconic soft-drink brand – has announced that it will meet its goal of using 100 per cent renewable electricity across its Australian operations by 1 January 2025 thanks to a newly signed deal with a New South Wales solar farm.

CCEP, the local subsidiary of the Coca-Cola Company responsible for Europe, Australia, the Pacific, announced on Tuesday that it had signed a new virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) supplied by French renewable energy company Engie.

The agreement will see CCEP purchase a percentage of renewable energy and associated Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) from the newly energised 400MW Wellington North Solar Farm which was developed by Lightsource bp in the NSW Orana region.

A VPPA differs from a PPA in that the latter usually bundles together electricity and RECs, while a VPPA purchases the RECs and then the electricity is sold on the off-taker’s behalf. PPAs are best suited to businesses that use most of their energy within a single wholesale market, while a VPPA suits companies with multiple locations.

In this case, Engie signed a PPA with Lightsource bp to buy a share of the Wellington North solar farm back in 2022, while it was still under construction. The contract with Coca-Cola draws from that deal.

For Coca-Cola, the 10-year VPPA secures the final slice of CCEP’s renewable electricity pie, helping the company to meet – and beat by one year – its Australian target of powering its local operations with 100 per cent renewable electricity by the end of 2025.

“As the maker and distributor of some of the world’s most popular beverages, we have set a series of ambitious targets to reduce our carbon footprint and environmental impact,” said Orlando Rodriguez, managing director at CCEP Australia.

“To reach our renewable electricity goal in Australia, we have engaged in strategic power purchase agreements and made the most of our rooftop real estate with solar panels at many of our facilities across the country.”

As part of CCEP’s longer-term goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2040, the company continues to invest in renewable electricity projects across Australia, in addition to rooftop solar systems at its production sites in all states and territories.

These include rooftop solar atop its sites in Darwin (NT), Northmead (NSW), Kewdale (WA), Richlands (QLD), Salisbury (SA) and Moorabbin (VIC), and with more solar projects in the works.

Lightsource bp’s Wellington North solar farm also has a major offtake deal with mining and infrastructure giant, Orica, signed back in 2022 when the project was under construction.

The PPA will see the Wellington North solar farm supply around 50 per cent of Orica’s Australian electricity needs, which will be the equivalent to around 30 per cent of its global supply shifting to renewables once the solar project is fully operational.