Swedish online pharmacy opts for PV technology from Germany

Bad Staffelstein / Germany, April 11, 2018 – IBC SOLAR AG, a global leader in photovoltaic (PV) systems and energy storage, has delivered all components for Sweden’s largest PV rooftop installation. The plant has been designed and mounted by Solkompaniet, Sweden’s leading PV installer. More than 5,500 polycristalline modules of the brand GCL produce energy for a new logistics center of the online pharmacy Apotea.

Along with building Sweden’s most climate-friendly logistic centre, Apotea has installed the country’s largest rooftop PV system to date. The building in Morgongåva is almost carbon neutral and is designed with the goal to minimize environmental impact. The PV plant produces almost 1.5 gigawatt hours per year – more than Apoteas annual energy consumption. Most of the solar energy is consumed directly, the surplus is sold to a regional utility.

“Apotea’s PV installation demonstrates the fantastic possibilities logistic centres have to contribute to a 100 percent renewable energy system”, says Johan Öhnell, CEO at Solkompaniet. He also states, solar energy has a huge potential in Sweden. Using commercial roofs for energy production is becoming an obvious choice for property owners who aim to invest in a sustainable future.

The solar modules on the roof cover an area of 17,000 squaremetres. This corresponds to the size of 2.5 football fields. The entire system weights more than 200 tonnes. 385 helicopter flights were needed to bring all components onto the roof. Solkompaniet has beaten its own record with this PV installation: Back in 2016, the company has already installed Sweden’s largest rooftop system with a 1.1 MW plant for a shopping mall in Helsingborg. This 1.5 MW system for Apotea is now the new number one in its field.

To meet the unique requirements of the site, Solkompaniet has opted to use the aerodynamic mounting system IBC AeroFix from IBC SOLAR, which is specially developed for flat roofs. Besides the fast mounting, the system enables a very light-weight installation with no need for a screw connection into the sensitive roof cladding. Along the edge of the roof, some modules have been mounted in a higher angle of 45 degrees. This detail makes the PV plant visible for guests arriving at the parking lot.

More information on international services, as well as on further news and product highlights from IBC SOLAR, can be discovered at the Intersolar Europe (June 20 to 22, 2018), Europe’s leading trade fair for solar technology, in hall A3, booth 579.