Romanian DIY retailer Dedeman to invest 4 mln euro in rooftop solar plants

Romanian do-it-yourself retailer Dedeman said on Wednesday it plans to install photovoltaic power plants on the roofs of 28 of its stores - an investment project worth 4 million euro ($4.83 million).

The electricity produced by the solar plants is exclusively intended for the company's own consumption, Dedeman said in a press release.

The total installed capacity at the 28 locations will be over 7 MWp (Mega Watt peak) and will meet approximately 30% of the annual electricity consumption of the stores. The project will be gradually expanded throughout the retailer's entire network.

"We made this investment thinking about the future. In addition to the financial aspects, we also considered the beneficial effects that the generation of green energy has on the environment. Solar energy is a source of clean and inexhaustible energy and we must learn to exploit it accurately and as much as possible," Dedeman president Dragos Paval said.

Each location will have about 900 solar panels, which means an installed capacity of about 260 kWp per store, Dragos Paval added.

On March 6, Dedeman opened its 51st store in Romania, following investment of 11 million euro. The store, located in the southern city of Slobozia, spreads on a total area of 39,000 sq m and employs 147 people.

Dedeman, founded in 1992 by two Romanian entrepreneurs, has 10,600 employees. Its founders, Dragos Paval and Adrian Paval, are the wealthiest men in Romania, with an estimated fortune of about 2 billion euro, according to the Top 300 Wealthiest Men in Romania 2019 ranking compiled by Romanian magazine Capital.

($= 0.9226 euro)

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