Bangkok’s Seacon Square Srinakarin shopping mall has seen success in its solar roof model. The project is expected to have a significant influence on Thailand ‘s green society roadmap, demonstrating the integration of advanced technology and environmental sustainability.
Electricity consumption represents a significant expense for department stores in Thailand, often amounting to hundreds of millions of baht annually. Being one of the country’s largest shopping centers, Seacon Square was inevitably confronted with rising costs in this regard.
After the project was completed in 2021, it can generate up to 24,000 kwh per day, reducing the property’s overall energy bill by 17%.
The Vice President of Seacon Development, Prote Sosothikul, said that the team conducted comprehensive research to identify solar cell technology solutions that would be compatible with Thailand’s climate.
They explored potential plants in countries like China, South Korea and Malaysia. They found out that N-Type double-glass solar panels were the most effective for energy production in Thailand, despite being 30% more expensive than the globally popular mono PERC glass panels.
But high-quality solar panels alone are not enough. Effective utilization of solar cell technology also requires adequate solar inverters to convert the variable direct current output of a solar panel into a utility frequency alternating current.
Therefore, the firm discovered that the enclosed control solar inverter from Huawei was an ideal solution, particularly considering Thailand’s humid climate and haze pollution.
Seacon Square Srinakarin’s solar roof project is currently the largest in ASEAN and could potentially reduce CO2 emissions by 1,000 tonnes and carbon emissions by 15,000 tonnes every year.
The energy produced monthly is equivalent to the power usage of over 1,000 families. In 2022, the successful solar roof model was expanded to Seacon Bangkae, which now produces 14,000 kwh per day and helps in cutting 10,200 tonnes of carbon emissions annually.
Furthermore, Seacon Development has invested in energy saving technology and plans to expand the solar cell system to other areas of the company, such as manufacturing and construction.
The company is also studying the prospect of creating biofuels from the waste generated by the 130,000 daily visitors to their malls.
