South African Breweries (SAB) and AB InBev Africa’s breweries will have on-site solar facilities by the end of January 2020, as part of a new multi-billion-rand energy project. The aim of this project is to purchase 100% of the business’s electricity requirements at manufacturing sites across Africa by 2025.
The solar power installations will be situated at seven SAB sites and they will partially power each facility, and represents 7% of the business’s electricity requirements. AB InBev’s global renewable energy commitment is to have 50% of the company’s purchased electricity come from renewable energy sources by 2020, and they are working towards meeting the target of 100% by 2025.
“We’ve achieved our 50% target in key markets across the globe ahead of schedule and we are well on track to achieve our 100% ambition with good progress being made in Africa,” said Taryn Rosekilly, Vice president of sustainability, SAB and AB InBev Africa.
Furthermore, the brewery group recently introduced the first electric truck to arrive on South African shores. The vehicle is known as the Fuso eCanter and it is designed to help progress towards a healthier environment and a low carbon future. It has a battery capacity of 82.8 kWh and a distance range of approximately 100-120km. The unique vehicle is currently operating in multiple countries, including Germany, Japan, Portugal, and has now been brought to South Africa for customer demonstrations.
SAB and AB InBev Africa are also in the process of working on a Pan-African renewable energy tender, which would source an equivalent of 440 megawatts (MW) of solar capacity to meet its 2025 energy targets. The implementation process will consist of three phases beginning with onsite solar installations with a capital investment of around R1.1 billion, followed by renewable energy solutions which will be installed on land adjacent to SAB’s breweries and concluded by offsite renewable energy solutions, which consist of remote installations requiring wheeling agreements to deliver the power to our breweries.
