Ikea switches on 1.6-MW solar system at Texas store

Sep 24, 2012 - Swedish furniture retailer Ikea on Monday officially powered up a 1,633-kW solar system at its store in Round Rock, central Texas.

The installation represents the largest solar array located at an Ikea store in the US, the company said in a statement. The furniture group now ranks as the largest solar owner in Texas, where it also has installations atop its Houston and Dallas-area Frisco stores, according to the announcement.

The solar system features 6,664 panels and is expected to generate about 2.4 million kWh of electricity per year, enough to offset over 1,800 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. It was developed and installed by US solar systems provider REC Solar Inc.

Including the Round Rock facility, Ikea has 33 completed solar projects in the US. Another six are underway, which will bring the company's US solar capacity to 38 MW, covering almost 89% of its locations in the country.

Ikea is the owner and operator of all the solar systems installed on its buildings. The company has earmarked EUR 590 million (USD 762m) for investment in renewable energy worldwide, concentrating on solar and wind over the next three years. It has installed over 250,000 solar panels globally and owns and/or operates some 110 wind turbines in Europe.

(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.291)

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