Musgrave and Airtricity Announce All-Ireland Green Electricity Deal Worth €25 Million

Airtricity to supply Green Electricity to Musgrave Group’s network of depots across Ireland in the largest green electricity deal of its kind

Musgrave Group today announced that it has signed an agreement with Airtricity to supply green electricity to its network of depots and sites across the island of Ireland.  Under the terms of the contract, Airtricity will supply green electricity to all Musgrave Group owned facilities on the island of Ireland, both North and South and via an affinity scheme to its SuperValu, Centra and Daybreak stores in the Republic of Ireland and SuperValu, Centra and Mace stores in Northern Ireland. The overall deal is worth in the region of €25 million and the agreement is the largest all-island green electricity deal of its kind.

Musgrave Group has made significant progress in improving the energy efficiency of its business and continues to focus on reducing its carbon emissions and associated costs. The contract with Airtricity further underscores Musgrave Group’s commitment to supporting the development of Ireland’s renewable energy infrastructure and will provide the business with an opportunity to further reduce its carbon footprint and its operating costs. The new ‘green’ electricity contract with Airtricity extends Musgrave’s current use of electricity generated from renewables into Northern Ireland.  The Airtricity deal will allow Musgrave displace more than 130,000 tonnes of CO₂, which is the equivalent of taking more than 60,000 family cars off Irish roads annually.

Commenting on the announcement, John Curran, Environmental Executive Musgrave Group, said, “Mitigating climate change impacts and reducing our dependence on fossil fuels are crucial sustainability issues. As well as lowering emissions of CO₂ and other greenhouse gases, this agreement with Airtricity will also result in reduced energy costs for Musgrave and our retail partners and underscores the value of continuing to focus on driving our sustainability strategy even in times of recession”.

Identified in 2009 as one of the world’s top fifteen eco-friendly retailers in a report published by Ryerson University's Center for the Study of Commercial Activity (CSCA) under the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority’s (TRCA) ‘Greening Retail’ initiative, Musgrave Group is committed to promoting sustainable development by managing its performance in areas such as waste management and energy efficiency.   Along with the green electricity contract and the separate green affinity scheme, Airtricity has also agreed to provide a discounted deal for home electricity and gas to Musgrave Group staff.

Commenting on the deal, Dermot McGovern, Sales Manager, Airtricity said, "Energy management is a crucial sustainability issue for business.  With Irish businesses increasingly aware of their responsibility to the environment, a growing number of organisations are implementing environmental or green programmes focused on operational areas where financial and carbon emissions savings can be achieved.  As one of the market leaders in sustainable environmental practices in the retail sector, our agreement to supply green electricity to Musgrave owned-sites across the island of Ireland illustrates the Group’s commitment to the environment and its sustainability strategy despite the economic downturn”.