Canadian New Holland Agriculture Plant Reduces Energy Footprint With Solar Installation

A CNH Industrial site in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan is now home to more than 1,000 solar panels. The new installation in Saskatoon is a partnership between CNH Industrial and the SES Solar Co-op.

It will yield 400 kilowatts of power for the Company’s New Holland Agriculture brand’s production facility in the city. This is equal to about 8% of the facility’s annual electrical demand, reducing its carbon footprint by 289 tons per year or the equivalent of 38 residential homes.

And this could be just the beginning. Saskatchewan is one of the sunniest provinces in Canada, with Saskatoon averaging 314 sunny days a year with 2,268 hours of sunshine. That means there is opportunity for future expansion of the solar array that could reduce the plant’s carbon footprint even further.

New Holland Agriculture Saskatoon had previously already successfully reduced its electrical consumption by 25%, and this new solar installation will help supplement the plant’s ongoing power needs with a zero-carbon-emission energy source. It’s the largest solar array in urban Saskatchewan.

It’s also latest in a series of ongoing sustainability initiatives and environmental improvements by CNH Industrial’s team in Saskatoon, which have also included lowering its water consumption by 30% and supporting native grass plantings in Wanuskewin Heritage Park. This helped prepare the local park for reintroduction of bison to the area.

The plant’s leadership in environmental sustainability has not gone unnoticed in the community. The Plant won the Rob Dumont Energy Management Award for Organization of the Year in 2019 after having been nominated for the honour already in 2018. It received the 2018 SaskPower Excellence in Energy Optimization award.

Seth L’Hoir, New Holland Agriculture, Saskatoon plant manager, “Sustainability initiatives are embedded in all areas of our business. We have set key targets to align with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), one of those being climate action. Being able to generate some of the electricity needed at our site from a zero-carbon-emission energy source is another step in the right direction.”

The collaboration with SES Solar Co-op also builds on CNH Industrial’s company-wide commitment to social sustainability and supporting the communities where it does business. This made the local, volunteer-run organization, also the first renewable energy co-op in the province, an ideal project partner.

Michael Nemeth, SES Solar Co-op Vice President, “We are thrilled to partner with CNH Industrial and support their sustainability initiatives. The solar panels procured for our newest project will reside on the CNH Industrial site producing renewable energy for their operations and generating a return for SES Solar Co-op shareholders.”

The plant in Saskatoon builds planters, seeders, combine heads, cultivators, and air carts under the Case IH and New Holland brands, and have been a member of the SES Solar Co-op since December 2015.

Sustainability is a long-term priority that is embedded in all aspects of CNH Industrial’s global business. The company is on the cutting edge of clean energy and alternative fuel solutions across all of its brands, driving sustainable transformation in energy efficiency and sustainability in all of its operations.

CNH Industrial manufactures and markets construction and agricultural equipment under its Case IH, New Holland Agriculture, CASE Construction Equipment and New Holland Construction brands, as well as powertrains for FPT Industrial in North America.