NOVUS includes rooftop solar power plant in construction standards of its stores

In the next two years, up to 30 stores of the chain will be equipped with solar power plants, the presence of solar power plants has already been included in the construction standards of new stores, said Deputy General Director for Operations of NOVUS Oleksiy Panasenko in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

"NOVUS is actively introducing green technologies: heat recovery systems, LED lighting, energy-saving refrigeration equipment, as well as solar panels on the roofs of new facilities and existing stores. In the next two years, up to 30 stores of the chain will be equipped with rooftop solar power plants. In the future, the presence of a solar power plant on the roof has already been included in the construction standards of stores. That is, all new stores that we will build will already be equipped with solar power plants," Panasenko said.

He added that the company also plans to use gas generators, which are more energy efficient than diesel ones (cogeneration).

"In the pilot project, we have two facilities that will be equipped with gas generators – our logistics center and one of the stores," Panasenko said.

Another pilot project – in 2025, the company will begin using heat pumps to reduce energy costs.

The NOVUS supermarket chain is being developed by BT Invest (Lithuania), a company created in 2008 by former shareholders of Sandora Raimondas Tumenas and late Ihor Bezzub. As of the end of December, the chain included 115 facilities (85 NOVUS, 28 Mi Market convenience stores and two Khapaika discounters).