27 January 2020 | 2 min.

a.s.r. real estate and Albert Heijn team up to generate more solar energy

a.s.r. real estate has signed five rental agreements with Albert Heijn on behalf of the ASR Dutch Prime Retail Fund, in order to generate renewable energy using solar panels. In the spring of 2020, solar panels will be installed on the roofs of five Albert Heijn supermarkets.

Winkelcentrum Tref In Middelburg Artist Impression

Shopping centre TREF in Middelburg

Over the past year, the ASR Dutch Prime Retail Fund has commissioned research which properties in its portfolio would be suited to the generation of solar energy. Supermarkets, in particular, appear to be suitable for the installation of solar panels due to their large roof area and high energy demand. An agreement has been signed with Albert Heijn for solar panels to be installed at five supermarket locations. These are located in Bergen op Zoom, Den Dolder, Maassluis, Middelburg and Twello. a.s.r. real estate leases these sites to Albert Heijn.

a.s.r. real estate will own the solar panels, and these will be connected to the smart meters of the supermarkets. The energy generated will be purchased by Albert Heijn through the rent that it pays. In the first year, the 1,925 new solar panels are expected to generate around 555,000 kWh. That is equivalent to the annual energy consumption of 185 households.

Sustainability goals

The rental agreements will contribute to the sustainability goals of both organisations. a.s.r. real estate’s ambition is to use energy generated on-site, wherever possible. In this way, a.s.r. real estate is working towards sustainable and future-proof portfolios. In recent years, a total of 4,000 solar panels have been installed by a.s.r. real estate on residential properties and offices.