Domino’s Pizza plans Australia-wide solar roll-out, to slice energy costs

Multi-national pizza chain Domino’s is looking to install solar across its outlets all around Australia, after rooftop PV on a store in the Brisbane suburb of Aspley achieved a nearly 50 per cent reduction in electricity costs.

The company said on Wednesday it had partnered with Construction, Supply & Service (CSS) to launch a renewable energy strategy combining solar and smart energy controls for Domino’s stores across Australia.

The move has apparently been inspired by the performance of the solar system at the Aspley store, which since its installation in 2017 has delivered a 34 per cent reduction in gird energy usage and 48 per cent saving in electricity costs.

“We are really excited that Domino’s Aspley is now sourcing power from renewable energy and are thrilled with the results,” said Domino’s Australia and New Zealand CEO Nick Knight in a statement.

“We are looking to implement this strategy in more stores across our network, with Domino’s Ballina, Noarlunga and Kelso already operating with solar power systems and energy demand controllers,” Knight said.

“We currently have 70 stores with energy demand controllers installed – which de-energise non-essential electrical equipment during peak power usage – and an additional seven stores already in the works.

“These stores have seen energy reductions of up to 22 per cent and electricity savings of up to 27 per cent in the past 12 months alone.”

One Step Off The Grid has previously reported on a Domino’s franchise in the western Sydney suburb of Plumpton, which in 2017 installed 10 13.5kWh Tesla Powerwall 2’s – not to store rooftop solar, but to get around an existing network supply problem.

According to the project installer, Natural Solar, the newly established Domino’s Plumpton hit a snag when it discovered its electricity load requirement outweighed the capability of the current network.

After much consultation and consideration, the decision was made to install the 135kWh Powerwall 2 array for around half the cost of the other alternative – a grid upgrade.