Concept for a carbon-neutral grocery store

Food stores and warehouses consume a lot of electricity in refrigeration. K-Group accounts for approximately 1% of all electricity consumed in Finland. Transfer to renewable electricity supports the K-Group’s commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement’s targets and the UN Sustainable Development Goal ‘Affordable and clean energy’ and Goal ’Climate action’. K-Group with Granlund has developed an energy recycling model that can reduce heat consumption by as much as 95%, turning a property almost carbon-neutral in terms of energy. The system combines a very low-emission refrigeration system using natural refrigerants, a heat pump and recovery systems for energy recycling. It utilizes the condensation heat of cooling in heating the property. The innovation can reduce a property’s heat consumption by 90%, making a store almost carbon-neutral.
From 2016. K-Group has significantly increased its production and use of solar power. In 2016, Finland’s biggest rooftop solar power plant was completed on the rooftop of K-Citymarket Tammisto, Helsinki. By summer 2017, K-Group had four even bigger solar power plants than and as many as 16 solar power plants operating on the rooftops of stores. The investments make K-Group Finland’s biggest producer and user of solar power. Currently, K-Group in Finland has 34 solar power plants totalling 12 MW.
All electricity bought by Kesko in Finland for Kesko properties is from renewable sources.