With the goal of establishing the world’s first sustainable sports club stadium, Club Estudiantes de La Plata achieved not only their green targets of renewable energy, resource efficiency, and reduced carbon emissions, but also the highly regarded EDGE Certification.
Challenges
Club Estudiantes de La Plata is a sports club that houses a successful football team, and as we know, successful sports teams need large stadiums with powerful energy systems. The goal for Club Estudiantes de La Plata is to establish the first eco-sustainable stadium in Latin America and earn their EDGE Certification.
As an innovation of the IFC, the EDGE Certification recognizes excellence in the performance and practice of the green business industry through rigorous credentialing standards. In order to achieve this certification, a 20% reduction in energy and resource consumption must be ensured. The extensive process of obtaining this credential includes a thorough examination of each stage of design and construction, along with the simultaneous delivery of documentation and follow-ups to guarantee that all requirements are met.
Schneider Electric’s authorized solar distributor, Intermepro, developed a turnkey project to obtain energy efficiency with a solution that exceeds the expectations of EDGE. This solution, consisting of Schneider Electric technologies, goes above and beyond the required percentages of reduction in energy consumption and other benefits.
Solution
Following Intermepro’s sustainable solution, the stadium was provided with a photovoltaic solar power generation system using Schneider Electric’s Conext XW+ 7048 inverter, Conext™ MPPT 80-600 solar charge controllers, with 12 kWp installed in photovoltaic power, as well as a Green Rhino lead crystal battery bank with 35 kWh in energy storage.
The Conext XW+ inverter prioritizes the self-consumption of stored battery and PV generated power, reducing the grid consumption while also maintaining battery energy for backup. Coupling the PV system to the battery bank with Conext MPPT Solar Charge Controllers provides a very efficient and economical method for self-consumption and for PV power storage.
This solution complemented Estudiantes’ green targets by providing a reliable backup, contributing to renewable energy and reducing grid consumption.
Results
After a thorough process of constant monitoring and confirmation of the requirements, Club Estudiantes de La Plata accomplished their EDGE Certificate. Now, due to Schneider Electric’s technology, the customer has an efficient renewable energy system that provides a reliable backup for its data and communications centers. Not only did they achieve such a highly regarded certification, but they also contribute to the sustainability of the planet. This makes Club Estudiantes de La Plata and its new stadium the first, not only in Argentina, but in the entire world, to receive the recognition of sustainable construction.
