The UK’s greenest cash and carry

How Unitas Wholesale member Chetan Wholesale became carbon neutral in just one giant leap

Chetan Wholesale realised it had a chance to make the journey to net zero emissions by 2040 in one giant leap.

Taking the opportunity to sell its existing Barking site, the family business spent three years planning, designing and building what it believes is the UK’s first truly net zero cash and carry depot, which opened last November.

DELIVERING A RETURN

Recognising that it needed to take action to reduce its environmental impact and seeing the value in shaving years off the target, Chetan also knew that moving faster than the established pace for change would incur costs that could have been avoided with a less ambitious sustainability goal. So, from day one the new depot needed to start delivering a return on that investment, not only in reduced emissions but in tangible bottomline energy and efficiency cost reductions.

And it certainly has. In just four months of operation, the new building used just over half the electricity consumption of the company’s previous site. The predicted 22,800 KWh in solar-generated electricity in 2025 will deliver a 2.4 tonne reduction in CO2 emissions compared to grid supply and slash the company’s annual energy cost from an estimated £15,410 to just £4,449. The £63,000 investment in the PV technology is expected to pay for itself within five years.

To achieve this feat, energy for lighting, fork-lift trucks, company cars and office equipment is obtained from a photovoltaic panel array; digital depot screens replaced single-use card, vinyl and paper merchandising materials; and a new location has reduced customers’ fuel use, as well as congestion and emissions in the London ULEZ.

The new Southend depot has proved that the investment and ambition behind it will be rewarded – Chetan has set the standard for a BREAM Certified depot, designed and built from scratch, and incorporated a whole raft of green initiatives and leading-edge innovations to deliver the UK’s greenest cash and carry.