Pioneer Foods rolls out national solar programme

Pioneer Foods' Klerksdorp plant

The plants at the company's factories in Wadeville, Clayville, Bloemfontein, Klerksdorp and Worcester are expected to yield a total savings of R116m over the next 25 years.

Niel Tolken, project engineer for Pioneer Foods says, “Sustainability is an integral part of the company’s overall strategy. The installation of alternative energy is a part of the organisation’s journey towards minimising its carbon footprint. We are very satisfied with the quality of the installation and we look forward to the anticipated results,”

“The solar programme allows the sites to generate solar electricity for their own consumption at a cost of up to 18% less than that of an electricity supplier. In addition to its savings potential, the installation of these solar solutions will also decrease the company’s carbon footprint. The total annual effective carbon offset for these solar plants is approximately 3,800 tonnes per year,” explains Manie de Waal, head of the solar division at Energy Partners, which installed the systems says,