Pernod Ricard Australia seals deal to source 100% renewable electricity

Another day, another major wine maker signed up to a renewable energy off-take agreement with corporate retailer Flow Power – this time Pernod Ricard, as it seeks to source 100% renewable electricity in Australia by mid-2019.
The 10-year deal, in this case called a Virtual Generation Agreement (VGA), will see Flow Power connect the business with both offsite wind and solar farms, to supply 80 per cent of the electricity of Pernod Ricard Winemakers Australia – whose range includes Jacob’s Creek and St Hugo.
The other 20 per cent will be supplied by 2.8MW of on-site solar PV, the first 1MW stage of which was recently installed and switched on by AGL Energy at Pernod Ricard’s Barossa Valley Winery. (The work in progress is pictured above.)
When completed in mid-2019, the PV array is expected to generate around 4,000 MWh of renewable electricity in the first year, enough to power around 800 South Australian homes a year.
According to Flow, the addition of the VGA will allow Pernod Ricard in Australia to achieve its ambition to source 100 per cent renewable electricity well ahead of its original plans, and in line with the company’s global sustainability goals.
“We are doing everything within our means to draw upon renewable energy, both in terms of our own renewable electricity sources at our winery and our commitment to supporting the renewable energy industry,” said Helen Strachan, director to legal and corporate affairs at Pernod Ricard Winemakers.
“We are excited to be leaders in defining the future of sustainable business in a rapidly changing environment.”
David Evans, Flow Power’s director of commercial and engineering, said the company was excited to lock in Pernod Ricard as its first South Australian hybrid Power Purchase Agreement.
“By matching both solar and wind Power Purchase Agreements, Pernod Ricard Winemakers receives a cost-effective means to get to 100 per cent renewables,” Evans said.
The deal is yet another for Flow Power, which launched its corporate renewables PPA business in September last year, off the back of a deal with the Ararat wind farm.
Just this week, the company signed another 10-year contract with another Australian wine maker, the ASX-listed Australian Vintage.
As with Pernod Ricard, the deal will see Flow source energy from both solar and wind farms – but in this case, enough to operate its largest site, the Buronga Hill winery in New South Wales, which also has its own rooftop solar array.