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Apple to power first Singapore retail store with solar energy

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Apple has announced its first retail store in Singapore, which is to be powered by a network of solar panels that will also provide renewable energy for the city. This is the latest in a string of green operations as part of the company’s stance on environmental responsibility.

According to Reuters, Apple has teamed up with Sunseap Group to establish a huge array of solar panels across the rooftops of Singapore. Apple already has a large campus in the region and runs a lot of operations – including a 900-staff contact centre – there, but as yet doesn’t have a retail presence. That’s soon to change as the company confirmed that a Singapore Apple Store is on its way, which will be the first in Southeast Asia.

Apple is funding the initiative, which will generate a massive 50 megawatts of power – 33 of which should be enough to cover all its operations (including the upcoming retail store) in the region, leaving 17 megawatts spare for the city’s public-owned housing. That’s enough to power around 3000 homes, and part of the reason Singapore’s development board green-lit the project.

Apple CEO Tim Cook has often stated that the company aims to “leave the world better than we found it,” and this is a big step towards Apple’s eventual plan of running all its operations worldwide on renewable power. There’s already plans in place for 200 megawatts of renewable power projects in China, and a deal with solar farms in California to help power Apple’s upcoming new HQ.