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Go Media Stadium is set to become one of the most sustainable large venues in New Zealand with the installation of over 1,700 solar panels.

The panels will be installed onto the roof of the East and West stands as part of the stadium’s ongoing drive towards reducing its carbon footprint.

Combined, the solar arrays will generate around 800 MWh a year, equal to 60% of the venue’s total energy usage.

The solar installation will not only lower the stadium’s carbon footprint but will also generate huge savings on energy spend each year, reducing the reliance on ratepayer funding. The investment is expected to pay for itself within six to eight years.

Auckland Stadiums acting Director, Scott Couch explained “we are working towards making Go Media Stadium the most sustainable large venue in New Zealand and our new solar panels are an exciting step in that journey.

“This installation will deliver clean, self-generated renewable energy to power our events and daily activities. We expect to save more than $100k a year on energy spending, including the revenue we generate from exporting excess energy back to the grid. We want to deliver sustainable, low carbon events at our venues and this project will help drive that ambition.”

Tātaki Auckland Unlimited Head of Climate Innovation and Sustainability, Dr Parin Rafiei-Thompson added “this initiative is an excellent step in helping a legacy venue switch to renewable energy sources. The solar array installation will help lower Go Media Stadium’s carbon emissions by 36 tonnes a year once fully operational.

“This project, along with the stadium’s move away from gas energy to state-of-the-art heat pumps, is a significant milestone in our drive to reduce carbon emissions across all of our venues.”

The solar panels are the latest installation in a series of green-focused infrastructure developments at Go Media Stadium. The installation of state-of-the-art electric heat pumps earlier this year helps the venue transition away from gas for water heating.

The pumps are estimated to contribute to over 100 tonnes of emissions reductions, which is equivalent to 5,000 trees growing for a year.

Amid the non-stop delivery of Go Media Stadium’s calendar, and with the stands still ringing from Auckland FC’s outstanding win over Macarthur FC last Saturday, panels were delivered via helicopter onto the stadium roof on Sunday morning.

Another flight is scheduled to deliver the remaining panels in March.

This approach is seen as being the most time and fuel-efficient delivery method, rather than using multiple 3,000 tonne cranes over a longer period.

Images: Go Media Stadium is in the process of installing over 1,700 solar panels (top), a helicopter dropping off the panels on the roof (middle) and approximately 40% of the venue’s stands usage will be powered by solar with the rest of the generation going into the grid when the project is complete (below). Credit: Tātaki Auckland Unlimited.

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