Farnborough International has invested £1 million in increasing its solar panel operation at its award-winning Exhibition & Conference Centre, located in Hampshire, UK.

As part of the organisation’s focus to get to net zero sooner through its energy consumption and sources, the new solar panel arrays, put in place by Empower Energy, occupy 5780sqm of space on the roof of its largest event space, Hall 1, the equivalent of 29 tennis courts.

At 1.2MW, the expanded system now produces over 1MW of usable electricity for the site on a sunny day, making the venue self-sufficient for its live events held in Hall 1, including globally attended exhibitions, meetings and product launches. Following the instalment of the new technology, the venue will generate 30% of its annual electricity needs via solar power. The investment is part of Farnborough International’s wider commitment to becoming a leading sustainable business, events venue and organiser, outlined in its recently launched sustainability charter, ‘Destination Zero’.

Discussing the seven-figure investment, Gareth Rogers, CEO of Farnborough International, said: “At Farnborough International, we have a goal of operating with net zero carbon emissions through concentrating our efforts and actions across four strategic pillars, Energy, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, Partnerships and Wellbeing & Community, to be able to deliver exceptional events and experiences for years to come. This additional investment into our already successful solar panel array is another significant step in our journey to becoming more sustainable.”

A leading exhibition and conference centre, which hosts more than 55 B2B and B2C exhibitions, conferences and experiences annually, a world-renowned event organiser, and film studios, Farnborough International is a catalyst for innovative experiences and rising events conglomerate.