Makro opened its most energy efficient store to date. Situated in Brakpan in Ekurhuleni, Makro Carnival will be the retailer’s first store to makes use of renewable energy.

With solar Photovoltaic (PV) panels on its roof, the store is expected to produce approximately 1-million kilowatts of electricity per annum. It is estimated that the PV installation will account for 60-80% of the building’s electricity needs during the day, and 30% of the stores total annual energy requirement.
 
Massmart Group Sustainability Manager Alex Haw says, “The plant has a peak capacity of 572 kW, making it among the largest solar installations located at standalone retail store.”
 
Alan Walker, Makro SA’s Store Development Manager says “Implementing PV at our Makro Carnival store underlines our commitment to reducing our environmental footprint. Since 2010 we have been greening our stores with the aim of saving energy, reducing running costs, improving the in-store environment and customer shopping experience. We achieve this by ensuring that all new stores are sustainably developed and that older stores are retrofitted with a variety of energy management technologies and systems.”

To further minimise Makro Carnival’s impact on the environment, the store has implemented various other green technologies that will reduce overall water and energy consumption, and ultimately result in cost savings. These include installing daylight harvesting, lighting controllers, energy efficient lighting, heat reclaim facilities, thermal storage systems as well as condensate and rainwater harvesting.
 
“In our new stores our energy efficient interventions are focused around four key areas: lighting, refrigeration, air conditioning and building envelope management” explains Walker.
 
Therefore in addition to the PV panels, the building has a daylight harvesting system that reduces the stores electrical lighting requirements. Other energy saving technologies include 100% LED lights throughout the store and motion sensors in the offices and storage rooms that automatically switch lights on and off.
 
Makro has also invested in an energy-efficient refrigeration solution with the latest energy saving features; automated night blinds; high speed doors and better insulation has been installed to reduce heat loss. This refrigeration solution also uses carbon dioxide which is 100% natural, has zero ozone depleting (ODP) and a global warming potential (GWP) rating of 1.
 
Makro Carnival is over 22 000m² in size, with 13 500m² of trading space, making it the biggest Makro store to date. The addition of this store has had a positive effect on job creation in the area. It has a total full-time staff complement of 387 employees, with local community residents accounting for 80% of the total.