Originally published in SEE's Global Impact Report
At SEE’s manufacturing facility in Madera, CA the machines that turn resin pellets into the company’s famous BUBBLE WRAP® brand original cushioning are now powered by a solar farm situated on 11 acres of company-owned land directly adjacent to the plant.
The 8,975 solar panels, along with a battery storage system, power 98% of the electricity used at the manufacturing facility and produce more than seven gigawatt-hours of energy per year.
SEE® (formerly Sealed Air) partnered with TotalEnergies (formerly SunPower) to develop the 3.5 megawatt ground mount solar project paired with a 770 kilowatt/3,080 kilowatt-hour battery storage system. The project will help reduce SEE’s energy spend by $1 million annually.
Beneath the solar panels, gravel was used instead of turfgrass to conserve water, which is especially important in a state fighting drought conditions.
The solar farm contributes to SEE’s sustainability goals by advancing renewable energy, lessening the energy intensity of operations, and reducing the company’s greenhouse gas emissions. As a clean energy source, the solar project will avoid 3,465 metric tons of carbon dioxide in its first year* and 50,160 metric tons of carbon dioxide over 15 years.
*CO2 equivalencies based on EPA AVERT 2020 California regional distributed PV avoided CO2 rate
Read SEE's Global Impact Report here.
Learn more about SEE's ESG efforts here.
