SPAIN – Following the opening of a 148-MW solar farm near Granada, Spain, with BayWa r.e. and Verbund as partners, AB InBev beers from Western Europe will be brewed using 100 percent renewable electricity.
Construction of the Verbund solar park in Pinos Puente which began in May 2021 is an example of a Virtual Power Purchase Agreement (VPPA) for the energy transition between companies to address the energy crisis that has many parts of the world firmly in its grip.
The 161-hectare Pinos Puente Solar Park will generate approximately 260 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of emission-free electricity per year, for a total planned capacity of 147.6 megawatt-peak (MWp).
The 10-year VPPA agreement between AB InBev and BayWa r.e. makes the solar farm part of one of the largest pan-European corporate solar power deals to date.
The agreement, which will allow AB InBev to brew beers across Western Europe with 100 percent renewable electricity, covers 14 of the company’s breweries in Western Europe and more than 50 brands in 12 countries, including Budweiser.
The supply of renewable energy will play an important role in supporting both the brewery’s 2025 climate change target and its ambition to achieve net-zero emissions across the value chain by 2040.
As a result, the brewer of beer brands such as Budweiser, Corona, and Stella Artois will be supplied with 260 GWh of green electricity per year, which will come from the Verbund solar park as well as a second plant that is scheduled to come online by the end of October.
According to the brewer, the supplied electricity is enough to brew over 10 billion beers a year or power an electric car 1.2 million times across the European continent.
Cybelle Buyck, Vice-President Legal & Corporate Affairs Europe at AB InBev, adds, “Our global goal, a future with more ‘Cheers!” stands for shared prosperity for our community, the planet, and our company. Sustainability is a fundamental part of our business, and we are very proud to open the park and start this next chapter with our partners.”
The Pinos Puente solar park is part of Verbund’s ambitious targets in its Strategy 2030 and marks its entry into the Spanish market.
The expansion of renewable energies in Europe is a key pillar of Verbund – in addition to strengthening the integrated home market in Austria and Germany and establishing itself as a European hydrogen player.
By 2030, up to a quarter of the electricity generated by Verbund is to come from wind power and photovoltaics.
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