French home improvement retailer Leroy Merlin is investing in a 600 kW solar power plant in Russia’s Volzhsky in Volgograd region. Energy generated by the subsidy free project will be used to power Leroy Merlin’s Volzhsky hypermarkets in the country.

Project construction and installation work has been started on site by renewable energy developer and EPC services provider Vershina Group of Companies through Solar Craft, LLC that entered into an agreement with Leroy Merlin in September 2021. The company said it will deploy Risen Energy solar modules and Huawei inverters for the facility.

According to Vershina, the project represents ‘perhaps, the first commercial quasi-PPA in Russia’ signed between a project developer and a commercial client. It is funded by Vershina in cooperation with Austrian investors.

Once the facility achieves commercial operations in Q1/2022, it is expected to cover about 30% of the annual electric power consumption of Leroy Merlin’s Volzhsky hypermarket enabling it to lower its carbon footprint by 20%.

“The development of its own generation based on renewable energy sources is one of the most efficient solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the store’s activities, allowing the company to reduce its environmental impact directly in the places of its presence and increase the autonomy of stores,” said Deputy General Director of Leroy Merlin, Philippe Roger.

Roger added that the company is now contemplating adding similar solar projects for its operations in other Southern Russian cities. Notably, the French company aims to achieve a 100% switch to renewable energy sources by 2025.