Žito Grupa has commissioned another solar power plant, so now its two photovoltaic installations will supply 60% of the electricity needed by its oil factory in Čepin.
Croatia’s agri-food company Žito Grupa completed the construction of a new 3.5 MW solar power plant at its cooking oil facility Tvornica Ulja Čepin alongside a 4.5 MW / 9 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS).
Projected annual electricity generation from the new facility is 5,500 MWh, compared to the facility’s total consumption of 10,130 MWh.
The construction of the TUČ 2 solar facility represents a EUR 3.85 million investment
According to Žito Grupa, the generated electricity will cover onsite energy demands, with any excess stored in the battery system. This makes it a prosumer.
The initial solar plant had a capacity of 1.7 MW but it was not equipped with battery storage.
The TUČ 2 solar facility was a EUR 3.85 million investment originally announced during the company’s initial public offering.
The project was co-financed by the European Union through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, as support to firms to increase energy and resource efficiency.
This new investment enhances the energy efficiency of the cooking oil facility
Karlo Dudaš, President of the Management Board of Tvornica Ulja Čepin, stressed that as a technologically modern and environmentally conscious factory, it opts for the adoption of the most advanced available solutions to lower the environmental impact and optimize resource utilization.
He noted that the first facility was brought online in 2023.
The new solar plant is larger than the previous one, and together they will cover more than 60% of Tvornica Ulja Čepin’s total electricity consumption, Dudaš pointed out.
This new investment enhances the energy efficiency of the cooking oil facility while lowering its reliance on grid power.
By expanding self-generation, the facility sets the stage for more predictable and efficient energy management, and the reduction of energy costs and the carbon footprint, Žito Grupa said.
