October 11 (SeeNews) - Kaufland Bulgaria plans to mount three new photovoltaic (PV) installations on the roofs of its hypermarkets in Sofia and the town of Petrich by the end of 2022 as part of energy efficiency measures, energy manager Ivo Vasilev said.
The company, a unit of German retail chain Kaufland, also intends to equip all its future hypermarkets with photovoltaic modules, Vasilev said in a press release on Monday.
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Kaufland already has rooftop installations at four hypermarkets in several Bulgarian towns and cities, including Dupnitsa, Stara Zagora, Burgas and Varna. The installations meet about 20% of the sites’ annual energy needs.
Overall, the company aims to save 3,900 tons of CO₂ emissions and nearly 8.7 GWh of electricity in 2022 through a combination of measures. This equals 1,500 fewer cars on the roads of Bulgaria, Vasilev said.
The firm also plans to build two new charging stations for electric cars by the end of 2022. The stations will be located at parking lots of hypermarkets in Sofia and Varna and will add to its existing network of 13 stations.
Additionally, Kaufland will introduce its second free charging station for electric bicycles, mopeds and scooters. It will be built at the company’s latest hypermarket in Sofia, which opened in September.
Kaufland entered the Bulgarian market in 2006. The retailer is part of German family-owned Schwarz Group, which also operates the Lidl supermarket chain in Bulgaria.