We're announcing a multi-million-pound investment in a new solar power project at our Southern Region Distribution Centre (SRDC) in Leicester.
Working together with energy infrastructure specialist Ineco Energy, the project will see solar panels installed across 30,000 square metres of roof space – equivalent to around four football pitches. Once complete, the panels are expected to generate 100% of the energy needed to power our logistics centre over the course of a year, reducing demand on the national electricity grid.[1]
The 3.56 MWp solar power system is expected to generate around 2.84 GWh of renewable electricity each year – enough to power approximately 1000 UK homes for a year. Any surplus electricity will go towards powering our Walkers crisps site, one of the world’s largest crisp factories, located just next door to the distribution centre.
The solar project is the latest in a series of sustainability investments across our manufacturing footprint. In recent years, we have switched to electric ovens at our site in Leicester, installed more efficient machinery on our manufacturing line in Coventry, and invested in new, more efficient fryers at our Brigg factory, the home of Pipers crisps. Together, these three initiatives have reduced our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by around 2,400 tonnes a year.[2]
The £3.6m solar panel installation follows a £14m investment to upgrade the distribution centre in 2021. The distribution centre plays a key part in our UK supply chain, employing 240 people and distributing products made at our six factories across the country. This marked one of the biggest UK logistics investments in our history and saw state of the art equipment and technology introduced across the site.
Construction of the solar power system is already underway, with installation expected to be completed by September 2026.
Andy Smethurst, UK Warehousing & Logistics Director at PepsiCo said: “Leicester is already home to one of the world’s largest crisp factories, and now we’re delivering one of the most complex solar power systems, right here in the East Midlands. It’s a major milestone for PepsiCo UK and shows how we’re continuing to find new ways to power our sites and operate more sustainably.”
Climate Minister Katie White said: “We welcome PepsiCo’s decision to embrace our rooftop solar revolution in powering their Walkers crisps distribution centre in Leicester - adding extra crunch to our clean energy mission. It’s a great example of how businesses in Britain can cut emissions, lower bills and strengthen our energy security.”
Angus Rose, Director at Ineco Energy: “Ineco is incredibly proud to be delivering this flagship solar project for PepsiCo. Once operational, it will be one of the largest rooftop systems of its kind in the UK food manufacturing sector, generating the same amount of electricity that the SRDC uses in a full year.
This project has required a collaborative and highly technical approach, and we’re delighted to now be moving into the construction phase. We look forward to continuing our strong relationship with the PepsiCo team.”
[1] As solar power is generated during the day, the site will remain connected to the grid and take power from it overnight as needed. Surplus energy generated by the panels throughout the day will be returned to the grid, and the system is expected to generate the same amount of electricity over the year as the site consumes annually.
[2] Replacing equipment in Coventry has reduced GHG by over 700 tonnes a year; installing electric ovens in Leicester has reduced GHG by 1500 tonnes a year; and the more efficient fryers at Brigg reduced GHG by 200 tonnes a year (all compared to usage before installation).
To learn more about how we’re making sustainable change across our business, follow us on X or Linkedin.