The Green Room

Boosting solar power in Buckeye

By Walmart Green Room on September 13, 2012 Leave a comment

Our commitment to solar energy is clear as day — and we’ve made significant progress toward that promise. Within the past six months alone, we’ve expanded our solar footprint in Massachusetts and installed our 100^th rooftop solar panel at a store in San Diego.

That work continues today with the announcement of an expansion of our solar initiative at a distribution center in Buckeye, Ariz., near Phoenix. That solar installation was one of our first in the state, and we’re thrilled that we can take it a bit further. The center will now feature 14,000 solar panels on the roof and parking canopies, which will produce up to 30 percent of the center’s energy needs. The solar production that results from this installation will be significant — up to 5.3 million kilowatt hours of renewable energy per year. That’s equal to the energy needed to power more than 400 homes and removes greenhouse gas emissions equal to taking approximately 600 cars off the road for a year.

This is our second significant solar installation in Arizona. Our distribution center in Casa Grande is equipped with a 2.1-megawatt solar power system, slightly smaller than Buckeye’s system. And Walmart is not the only company using more solar in Arizona. In fact, the state now ranks second in solar installations, behind California. How does your state rank in solar energy availability? Find out here.