SABIC’s polycarbonate facility in Cartagena, Spain is set to break new ground as it shifts production to become the first large-scale chemical production site of its kind to be run on entirely renewable power, following the signing of a major agreement.
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This deal sees Iberdrola – among the largest electricity utility companies – invest approximately €70m to construct a 100MW solar PV facility with 263,000 panels, also making it the largest industrial renewable power plant in Europe.
The plant is expected to be fully operational by 2024.
SABIC says the 25-year deal checks another milestone in their goal to transitional all global operations to greener energy. Their ambition is to have 4GW of either wind or solar energy installed for its sites globally by 2025 and rising to 12GW by 2030.
SABIC previously installed solar panels as a form of alternative energy production at plants in India and Thailand in 2019, which is helping reduce their greenhouse emissions by 200 tons, and SABIC’s Home of Innovation in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia has been completely solar-powered since 2015.
Bob Maughon, EVP Sustainability, Technology & Innovation and CTO and CSO at SABIC, said: “This ground-breaking deal with Iberdrola is a significant step towards achieving our long-term sustainability and clean energy targets.
“Partnerships of this kind are the cornerstone of our business growth model. The solar PV powered plant in Cartagena demonstrates that SABIC continues to drive the sustainability agenda in the chemicals industry and that a transition on such a large scale is possible.
“In recent years, the many breakthroughs in renewable energy technology have made deployment at this kind of scale possible.
“The new PV plant will deliver an 80kt annual reduction in indirect CO2 emissions, and furthers strengthens our support and contribution to wider climate change initiatives like EU 2030 and our alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”
Once the plant is online, customers, including those in the automotive and construction sectors, will have access to polycarbonate solutions produced with renewable energy in a response to consumer demands for more sustainable solutions as the world’s governments try to move the global industry to a more sustainable future.
Eduardo Insunza, Corporate Customer Global Director of Iberdrola, said: "These partnerships enhance the competitiveness of renewables and continue to create opportunities for the development of innovative projects that are transforming the present and the future of energy.
"The long-term energy purchase contracts provide stability to investments and have become an optimal tool for managing the electricity supply of major consumers, committed to clean and sustainable energy sources."
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