Press Releases

TESCO OPENS UK'S MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT STORE

12 January 2009

Tesco today opens its first store of the future in Cheetham Hill, Manchester. The store has been built using Tesco’s new low carbon blueprint which will provide a foundation for stores built in the UK going forward.

The new 52,000 sq ft store is part of Tesco’s Climate Change Programme and plan for the future to build low carbon stores. Through a combination of energy efficiency measures, the store’s carbon footprint is 70% less than an equivalent store built in 2006. These measures will also deliver significant savings for the Company with a 48% reduction of the store’s fuel bill based on 2006 baselines.

Commenting on the Cheetham Hill store, Lucy Neville-Rolfe, Executive Director, Corporate and Legal Affairs at Tesco, said:

“The Cheetham Hill store is an exciting development in Tesco’s long term plans to reduce significantly the carbon footprint of its stores by 2020. The new blueprint, which will provide a foundation for future stores being built in the UK, demonstrates our commitment to tackling climate change. It will also considerably reduce store fuel costs going forward.

“In these tough conditions we feel that our Regeneration Partnership, through which we ring-fence a large number of jobs for people out of work or on benefits for at least six months, is more important than ever. Particularly in a climate where many people are worried about job security, we are delighted to be creating further employment in the greater Manchester region.”

The new store boasts an innovative mix of environmentally-friendly materials, technologies and design. Whilst similar in appearance to existing Tesco stores, the store architecture, fixtures and signage at Cheetham Hill store are specifically designed to both reduce the store’s carbon footprint and heat wastage and to maximise the use of recyclable content.

The design and store interior consists of many energy efficient features. For example: the store has a new lighting system that automatically dims individual lights when natural light increases; it has a natural refrigeration system whereby all fridges are cooled with CO2, which is significantly less damaging to the climate than traditional fridge gases; and it has a fully recyclable plastic moulded checkout packing areas, which have much lower carbon and water content. Importantly, despite these innovative adaptations, the consumer experience remains of the highest quality and relatively similar to that of existing stores.

Since 2000, Tesco has invested significantly in improving energy efficiency and it has succeeded in halving the amount of energy its UK stores require for every square foot of space (2006 baselines). The Cheetham Hill store is a major development for Tesco in meeting its long term environmental objective to dramatically reduce its carbon footprint.

Steve Howard, CEO, The Climate Group, said:

“Tesco’s climate commitments are proving that it is possible to combine new technology and good business sense to make dramatic reductions in their carbon footprint. This new blueprint store design is an example that we hope other businesses will follow.”

Importantly, the new store will play a significant role in the local economy employing 230 staff in total. It represents the latest store to open under the retailer’s Regeneration Partnership scheme, with 118 of the jobs being ring-fenced for people who have been out of work or on benefits for at least six months. Through the scheme Tesco has been working with key organisations, including those local to the area and the Government’s Learning and Skills Council, to offer training to these new employees in preparation for their new start.

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For more information please call the Tesco press office: 01992 644 645

Notes to Editors

Additional facts and figures:

HOW THE STORE WILL WORK

For customers, the new 52,000 sq ft store at Cheetham Hill will be just as friendly and welcoming as any other Tesco store. However, while it might seem the same, it is actually very different. It incorporates an innovative mix of environmentally-friendly design, materials and technologies, including:

A timber frame instead of metal, significantly reducing the store’s embodied carbon footprint
Roof lights allow more natural daylight into the store, saving on electricity
A CHP plant which runs on naturally produced fuel from sustainable sources, enabling the store to generate its own electricity and make use of the waste heat
A natural refrigeration system which uses CO2 instead of HFCs
A natural ventilation system which provides more energy efficient heating and air conditioning
Increasing the use of recyclable materials in fixtures and signage and designing equipment for future ease of recycling
A metering system to monitor energy and water usage
Minimising construction waste and recycling all unused construction materials