Electricity from massive Kaitāia solar farm powering stores nationwide

Mornē Rossouw, Lodestone Energy’s asset and operations manager; Karlos Marron, Kaitāia Warehouse manager; Jamason O’Connor, Kaitāia Noel Leeming manager, and Anna Shipley, Warehouse chief corporate affairs officer, celebrate the stores going fully solar powered this week.

The first electricity has started flowing from the country’s largest solar farm near Kaitāia, with the town’s Warehouse and Noel Leeming stores the first to have fully solar power from the plant.

On Tuesday, electricity from Lodestone Energy’s massive solar farm in Gill Rd, just a few kilometres from central Kaitāia, went to its first customer.

With more than 61,000 solar panels installed, the farm will generate 55 GWh of power annually and is earmarked for residential and commercial energy consumers; most notably The Warehouse Group.

And on Tuesday, the group celebrated its Kaitāia Warehouse and Noel Leeming stores going fully solar-powered with an event that included free food and facepainting.

Facepainter Nadine Clement put some sun and fun on to the face of Quade Sanders, 2, after finishing a design on his sister Eshar Sanders, 3, at the Kaitāia Warehouse solar power switch on event on Tuesday.

The two stores were the first of 26 of The Warehouse Group’s stores and sites, including The Warehouse, Warehouse Stationery, Noel Leeming and Torpedo7, across Northland, Auckland and Waikato, running on the power of the sun.

The day marked the Warehouse Group’s first step in their transition to solar, following the announcement of their agreement with Lodestone Energy, that will see more than 250 sites across the country switch to solar energy plans by the end of 2026.

“Going solar has been an important ambition for us to achieve across our store network. We challenge ourselves with something we call ‘The Tomorrow Test’ – which helps us take action to make improvements in both big and little ways, to be a more sustainable business. This is a significant milestone and we’re delighted to mark the occasion at our Kaitāia store, with the community that has helped make it happen,’’ The Warehouse Group’s chief executive Nick Grayston said.

At the Kaitāia Warehouse solar power switch on event on Tuesday were Mornē Rossouw, Lodestone Energy’s asset and operations manager; Karlos Marron, Kaitāia Warehouse manager; Jamason O’Connor, Kaitāia Noel Leeming manager and Anna Shipley, Warehouse chief corporate affairs officer.

“We estimate that today’s switch will reduce our Scope 2 emissions by at least 808 tonnes of CO2e a year - the equivalent of taking 175 passenger vehicles off the road yearly and steers us towards our goal of zero emissions in our operations by 2040.”

The company has tapped into Lodestone’s new 64-hectare Kaitāia solar farm, where they will receive the benefit of 25 per cent of the solar power it generates.

‘’Completing the construction of our Kaitāia farm was a big feat, thanks to Te Rarawa Iwi, the local community, our construction partners, and the wider Lodestone Energy team,” Lodestone Energy’s managing director Gary Holden said, emphasising the collaborative effort that made this milestone possible.

“The Warehouse Group’s operational hours are a great match for solar energy. When their stores are at their busiest, the sun’s energy is at its peak. With the sophistication of the New Zealand market, this arrangement is akin to locating solar panels on top of The Warehouse Group sites but at a lower cost, with faster deployment and without the limitation of the physical space of a rooftop.’'