Article

2 August 2019

Bookmark

PPAs Commercial & Industrial (C&I) United States of America

Top 100 Solar-Powered Beer Breweries

Author: Tom van der Linden, Solarplaza

Tapping into the potential of solar energy:

The Top 100 Solar-powered beer breweries

“What's better than a cold one underneath the scorching hot sun? A cold one brewed with POWER from the sun!”

That was the opening line of our first overview of solar-powered beer breweries, back in 2015. A modest Top 40 overview at that time, it somehow resonated with our readers and many people beyond our normal readership as well. Who would have guessed that the combination of solar power and beer would be so intoxicating? Then again: solar. powered. beer. What’s not to like?

Since then, we’ve received requests from green-minded microbreweries across the world, from the US to New Zealand, to proudly have their new solar arrays featured in the overview. On the other side of the spectrum, we were also approached by the biggest giants of the beer industry, who have been making impressive headway on greening up their operations and are eager to claim the crown of solar beer making. 

All in all, more than enough reason to present you with an updated and extended global Top 100 of solar-powered beer breweries, with new insights and comments.
Anxious to just see the list? Click here to fast-forward to the Top 100. 

Guerilla warfare

Craft beer is most certainly having its proverbial “day in the sun”. Whereas most beer enthusiasts would have looked at you sheepishly when asked about a “double-dry-hopped IPA” a good decade ago, chances are that your traditional Heineken-loving father in law will now have a six-pack of Lagunitas waiting for you in his old fridge. The international awakening of beer drinkers to the true taste range of beer has been shaking up the entire beer industry. New craft beer breweries - with scales ranging from micro and nano, to molecular and basement - seem to pop up on every corner of the earth. Yet, the majority of market share is still being held by the big guys. These giants of old are firming their grip on the industry by acquiring and taking up stakes in successful craft beer breweries, in order to keep their portfolios diverse and supply their awoken clients with the hip stuff. Then there are some rebelling factions with ‘punk’ attitudes that aim to fight ‘the man’ in order to protect truly artisanal beer making. It’s guerilla warfare out there... 

However, let’s not drift off too far from our purpose here. Back to the sun. 

The Mad Mole Brewing Company, recently named "America’s favorite solar-powered microbrewery"

The perfect collaboration brew

What’s the connection between beer brewing and solar power? It’s not too hard to see how these two things make for such a potent brew. 

In true revolutionary fashion, the movement started small. The first beer makers to embrace solar power were the little ones. Like the Left Hand Brewing Company in Colorado, who installed a modest 4.8 kW solar array as early as 2006. Or Anderson Valley Brewing Company, who - that same year - outfitted their brewery with a visionary 125 kW system, comprised of 768 solar panels. Being local businesses, with a focus on an artisanal way of brewing beer with natural ingredients, the concept of striving for energy independence and a greener way of powering operations made a lot of sense. Local beer breweries are often characterized by enhanced environmental awareness and efforts related to that. Examples include the careful consideration of water management; the donation of spent grain to surrounding farmers; the use spent hops as fertilizer, the recycling of materials, and so on. 

Moreover, beer brewing simply is a very energy-intensive process. Saving on power costs is a big plus for any brewer. At that time, however, it was still relatively revolutionary to invest in solar panels. They were pioneers. Most of those that followed suit only did so years later, as the large majority of the systems listed in the overview dates from the (mid) 2010s. 
That’s also about the moment when the giants started showing up. By that time, switching to solar started making more and more sense for any type of commercial operation with big empty rooftops available. The economics were sound, the investment solid and - of course - the marketing value of being renewable energy powered was a great bonus. 

From IPA to PPA

What do most breweries have in common? Large swathes of rooftop space on brewing facilities and warehouses, readily available for installing solar panels. Because of that, this has obviously been the main way to go for many of the breweries that have made efforts to incorporate solar panels. For those with ambitions that went beyond their rooftop spaces, panels were also installed on carports, or as ground-mounted arrays on the premises of the brewery. 

But slamming panels on your roof isn’t the only way to green up your act. Like many businesses with them, an increasing amount of breweries have started going solar by way of the ‘power purchase agreement’ (PPA). Instead of having their own panels installed, they close a contract with the owner of an (often closely-situated) solar power plant for the off-taking of a fixed amount of solar power per month at a fixed price. Especially for the larger breweries, who might be limited in the availability of space for solar panels, this is an effective way to cover a significant proportion of their energy use. Traditionally, this overview only covers those breweries that actually feature solar panels themselves. However, we’ll also give due credit to some of the most remarkable solar PPAs out there. 

The Tesla Power Packs at Sierra Nevada's Chico brewery

Canning up solar power

Following the general solar industry trends, we’re now also seeing beer brewers incorporate energy storage into their power systems. Two prolific examples are those of Sierra Nevada in California and the Maui Brewing Company in Hawaii. 

Sierra Nevada is a groundbreaker in all aspects. It’s the highest-listed brewery in the Top 100 that’s not directly part of (or owned by) one of the big global beer conglomerates. At their location in Chico, California, they boast a total of 2.6 MW of solar capacity, with 10,751 solar panels spread out over brewing facilities and carports. At their Mills River, North Carolina, brewery they host another 710 kW worth of solar panels, spread out over 2 acres of rooftop space.

Having grown out to be one of the best-loved and fastest-growing craft beer breweries in the US, Sierra Nevada was getting hit hard by demand charges for its increasing power use. In 2016, they even paid more for demand charges than the normal electric bill. To counter that, they installed 1 MWh worth of Tesla power packs in 2017, which allow them to draw additional stored power during peak times and ease the stress that its growing facilities put on the area’s power grid. 

Similarly, Mauii Brewing Company - the largest craft brewer in the state of Hawaii - have turned to Tesla powerpacks to achieve their vision of grid independence by 2019. A desire to increase sustainability, as well as an opportunity to mitigate Hawaii’s high electricity prices, drove them towards achieving that goal. 

Kings of beer?

In the end, when it comes down to pure scale, there’s just no beating the ‘big boys’ of the beer industry. Once they awoke to the powerful combo of solar and beer, things started moving fast. 

One of the first major breweries to get into solar - and to this date still the leading solar beer brewer - was iconic Dutch beer maker Heineken. In an effort to operate more sustainably, they started outfitting their European beer breweries with big solar arrays from 2011 on, realized through a solid partnership with Dutch solar installer SolarAccess. This started out with breweries in Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK, but has since also skipped across continents to their breweries in Singapore and Nigeria. 
Their 3.3 MW solar system on the Massafra brewery in Italy long held the highest ranking in the overview. This year, however, Heineken is breaking its own record and solidifying its claim to the top spot. The 908 kW system powering their Den Bosch brewery in the Netherlands just got a serious upgrade. With 4.9 MW of additional capacity, this brewery now features an impressive 5.8 MW solar system, easily the world’s largest. Now featuring 12,841 additional solar panels, it covers a surface equivalent to 8 football stadiums, and includes a grand total of 16,524 solar panels!
All in all, combining the systems on all its breweries, Heineken boasts a self-situated solar portfolio of 15.8 MW.

Related to that is the story of Lagunitas. This famous Californian brewer installed an impressive 2.1 MW solar system in 2017 to power its Petaluma brewery, which earns it the 6th spot in the overview. That same year, Heineken acquired full ownership of Lagunitas. In an effort to “maintain the Lagunitas culture and free spirit”, the company continues to “operate as an independent entity within Heineken”. One thing’s for sure: on the topic of sustainability, it’s been a good match. 

Another giant that has been making huge waves lately is Anheuser-Busch InBev, the result of various beer giants of the past merging, and merging again. The global beer maker has fully committed itself to sustainability and has made the RE100 pledge to 100% power their breweries around the world through renewable energy sources. In order to do that, and do it quickly, they’re taking both of the roads previously described: installations on breweries and power purchase agreements with other solar plants. That includes the biggest solar-beer deals ever recorded. In June 2019, Anheuser-Busch InBev closed a PPA with American solar company Recurrent Energy for the purchase of 222 MW worth of solar power. They will (virtually) be drawing power from the 250 MW Maplewood solar PV facility in Texas, once it’s completed and generating electricity by 2021. That should get them a long way to fulfilling the goal of 100% renewable-powered US operations by 2021. These efforts reach far beyond the US though. In Australia, their subsidiary CUB closed a PPA with the 112 MW Karadoc solar farm, and in the UK they’ve signed a deal with developer Lightsource BP for 100 MW of solar power. In Mexico they’re partnering with developer Iberdrola to power their massive Zacatecas brewery. Its subsidiary Ambev SA, the largest brewer in Latin America, recently signed $36 million worth of deals with 4 partners to develop 31 solar projects in Brazil.

On the more traditional level of this overview - ergo: solar panels on your brewery - AB InBev has a presence in the overview too, in the shape of a 2,000 kW system (7th on the list) at its Chinese brewery in the Yunnan province and a 530 kW system on a brewery in New Jersey, as well as through some of previously independent breweries it acquired around the world, like Golden Road Brewing in California (270 kW) and 4 Pines in Australia (100 kW). 
That presence is set to increase as well, judging by announcements like the one made in June last year, which said that Ab InBev will outfit 20 of its Chinese breweries with solar panels by 2020.

Fellow beer giant SABMiller shouldn’t be overlooked either. Although they haven’t communicated ambitions on the level of Heineken or AB InBev, they do have a place on the podium. Their 3.2 MW solar system on the MillerCoors brewery in Irwindale, California still secures the third position in the top 100.

Geography

So where are all these solar-powered beer breweries situated? 

Similar to how the art of craft beer brewing was reignited in the United States, the concept of power those breweries with solar power also got started in America. And to this day, the US does still account for most of the solarized breweries. Sunny California is the leading state, with 13 breweries, but North Carolina (7), Michigan (5), Wisconsin (5) and Colorado (4) are also steady on the map. All in all, American solar beer breweries are pretty spread out, as 29 different states are represented in the overview. 

If we’re not speaking in terms of the number of breweries, but the actual capacity they cumulatively represent, there’s a lot going on in Europe. However, this is of course strongly fueled by the efforts of one brewer in particular: Heineken. 

XXXX Brewery in Brisbane, Australia

An interesting newcomer in the field is Australia. There seems to be a perfect storm brewing in Australia when it comes to its flourishing beer culture and exploding solar market. When we started this overview, there was not a single Australian brewery featured in the list. Between 2016 and 2019, however, twelve breweries have gone solar. Almost half of them took a deep dive and installed systems around the 100 kW mark. The biggest of the bunch is Brisbane-based XXXX, which installed a 690 kW system this year. 

What other rising stars will we see over the coming years? If AB InBev makes good on its big Chinese promises, we might see more and more Chinese breweries on this last. After all, China is one of the fastest growing markets in terms of beer consumption.

Alright, I’ve indulged myself long enough with all this beer talk. Time to hand out prizes, and then present you with the full list. 

Top 5 biggest systems

#1 Heineken - Den Bosch, the Netherlands: 5,808 kW

  • 16,524, panels, installed in 2013 and 2019

  • Electricity generated: 4,569 MWh/Year

  • This will cover >761 KHL

  • How big is this? The size of more than 8 football stadiums!

  • Installed by: SolarAccess

#2 Heineken - Massafra, Italy: 3,300 kW

  • 13,000 panels

  • Electricity generated: 4,420 MWh/Year

  • Covers 18% of brewery’s power use

  • Installed by: SolarAccess

#3 MillerCoors - Irwindale, California, USA: 3,200 kW

  • More than 10,000 panels

  • Array size of over 10 acres

  • Installed by: SolarCity 

#4 Sierra Nevada - Chico, California, USA: 2,600 kW (+1MWh battery)

  • 10,751 solar panels

  • Rooftop + carport solar installations

  • Covers 20% of company’s needs

  • Installed by: Mitubishi Electric & Tesla

#5 Tiger (Heineken) - Singapore: 2,196 kW

  • 8,038 solar panels

  • Electricity generated: 2,300 MWh / year

  • Installed by: REC Group

So, once again, hats off to Heineken for their continuous efforts to brew more sustainably and have their breweries becoming more energy independent. 3 out of the top 5 spots are claimed by the Dutch beer giant, while a total of 8 made it to the top 20. 

Of course I have to make the side note that this overview primarily focuses on solar-powered beer breweries, rather than solar-powered beer brewers. That’s a slight, but significant distinction. If we’re taking a broader view of solar-powered beer brewing and account for the brewers who are buying clean power from external vendors to compensate for their energy use and become more sustainable, there would be a much bigger spotlight for AB InBev in this piece. Personal (beer) tastes aside, we can only applaud the significant efforts and RE100 pledge of such a massive company to become sustainable in their energy use. And the deals they’ve been signing prove that it’s definitely not just empty green talk. 

Honorable Mentions

As mentioned, it’s hard to compete with the majors when it comes to pure scale and volume. Therefore, I’d also like to highlight some special breweries further down the list, who definitely earn special mentions due to their extraordinary efforts. 

#10 Namibia Breweries Limited - Windhoek, Namibia - 1,100 kW

  • Founded in 1920 by Carl List and Hermann Ohlthaver and still owned by the family

  • First African brewer to go solar in 2014, on a big scale as well

  • 1.1 MW solar PV plant, part of one of the world’s largest diesel/PV hybrid systems

  • Covering up to 34% of the brewery’s energy use

  • 4,200 solar panels, 6,400 square meter surface

  • Realized by: DHYBRID Power Systems

#12 Maui Brewing Company - Maui, Hawaii, USA: 1,000 kW

  • Started in 2005 (and still owned) by the Marrero family

  • Largest independent brewer in Hawaii

  • Goal of grid independence by 2019 close to accomplished

  • Invested $9 million to get there

  • 1MW solar installation + Tesla powerpacks

  • In the process of building solar concentrators to superheat water and replace the use of gas in brewing process

  • Use of biodiesel when solar system and batteries are exhausted

#36 Anderson Valley Brewing Company - Boonville, California, USA: 125 kW

  • Founded in 1987

  • Most likely, the first ones to install a solar system as early as 2006

  • 768 solar panels, for a total of 125 kW

  • Covering 40% of the brewery’s energy use

  • Annually donates 2000 pounds of spent grain to local livestock ranchers

  • Uses spent hops as fertilizer for own hop fields

  • Repurposes and recycles. Like the 100-barrel copper brew house it pieced together from leftovers of two closed German breweries

The Anderson Valley Brewing Company's iconic beer cap, also featured at the top of the article

The full updated Top 100

Key stats:

  • 100 entries

  • Cumulative capacity: 38,980.68 kW

  • Average system size: 389.81 kW

  • 74% in the USA, 11% in Australia, the rest scattered

# Name Size (kWp) Location Country # panels year Installer
1 Heineken 5,808.00 Den Bosch Netherlands 16,524 2019 SolarAccess
2 Heineken 3,300.00 Massafra Italy 13,000 2012 SolarAccess
3 MillerCoors 3,200.00 Irwindale, CA USA > 10,000 2015 Solarcity
4 Sierra Nevada** 2,600.00 Chico, CA USA 10,751 2011 Mitsubishi Electric
5 Tiger (Heineken) 2,196.00 Singapore Singapore 8,038 2016 REC Solar
6 Lagunitas Brewing (Heineken) 2,100.00 Petaluma, CA USA 6,000 2017 Westcoast Solar Energy
7 Anheuser-Busch InBev 2,000.00 Yunnan Province China   2019 ACC
8 Heineken 1,463.00 Alken-Maes Belgium   2011 SolarAccess
9 Brouwerij West 1,200.00 San Pedro, CA USA   2016  
10 Namibia Breweries Limited 1,100.00 Windhoek Namibia 4,200 2013 DHYBRID Power Systems
11 Heineken 1,020.00 Tadcaster UK 4,000 2014 SolarAccess
12 Maui Brewing Co.** 1,000.00 Maui, HI USA   2013  
13 Heineken 1,000.00 Bergamo Italy 3,984 2012 SolarAccess
14 Stone Brewery 962.00 Escondido, CA USA 1,561 2008 Borrego Solar & IES
15 Sierra Nevada 710.00 Mills River, NC USA 2,200 2014 Kyocera
16 XXXX 690.00 Brisbane, QLD Australia 2,200 2019  
17 Duvel Moortgat 620.00 Puurs Belgium   2012 SolarAccess
18 Anheuser-Busch InBev 530.00 Newark, NJ USA 3,000 2014 Orion Energy Systems
19 Riverwalk Brewery Co. 500.00 Newburyport, MA USA      
20 Heineken 395.00 Karlovac Croatia 1,380 2018  
21 Kona Brewing Co.** 336.00 Kona, HI USA   2019 Holu Energy
22 Highland Brewing Co. 324.00 Asheville, NC USA 1,045 2015 Ashburn Builders
23 New Belgium Brewing Co. 300.00 Fort Collins, CO USA 1,235 2010 Namaste Solar
24 Nod Hill Brewery 287.00 Ridgefield, CT USA   2019  
25 Golden Road Brewing (ABI) 270.00 Anaheim, CA USA   2019 Revel Energy
26 Double Mountain Brewery 238.00 Hood River, OR USA   2018 Competitive Commercial Roofing
27 Kona Brewing Co. 229.00 Kona, HI USA 880 2010 Sunetric
28 Moonraker Brewing Co. 200.00 Auburn, CA USA   2016  
29 Boulevard Brewing Co. 200.00 Kansas City, MO USA   2011  
30 Bear Republic Brewery 166.80 Cloverdale, CA USA   2014 North State Solar Energy
31 SweetWater Brewing 157.00 Atlanta, GA USA 750 2012 -
32 St Austell Brewery 150.00 Cornwall UK 600 2013 ZLC Energy
33 Arcadia Brewing Co. 150.00 Kalamazoo, MI USA 536 2016 Helios Solar
34 Barrington Brewing Co. 144.00 Great Barrington, MA USA 480 2016  
35 Flying Fish Brewing Co. 129.00 Somerdale, NJ USA 463 2011  
36 Anderson Valley Brewing Co. 125.00 Boonville, CA USA 768 2006 -
37 Pizza Port Brewing Co. 117.00 Carlsbad, CA USA   2013 Sullivan Solar Power
38 Single Speed Brewing Co. 103.00 Waterloo, IA USA   2016 SunPeak
39 4 Pines (ABI) 100.00 Sydney, NSW Australia   2019  
40 Ale Asylum 100.00 Madison, WI USA 480 2015  
41 The Australian Brewery 100.00 Rouse Hill, NSW Australia 277 2018 Autonomous Energy
42 Stone & Wood Brewery 100.00 Murwillumbah, NSW Australia   2017  
43 Alamo Beer Co 100.00 San Antonio. TX USA 256 2015-2019 One80 Solar
44 Stomping Ground 96.30 Melbourne, VIC Australia   2018  
45 Grand Ridge Brewery 96.00 Gippsland, VIC Australia 384 2014  
46 Jackie O's Brewery 94.00 Athens, OH USA 298 2015 Third Sun Solar
47 North Coast Brewing 92.20 Fort Bragg, CA USA 282 2013 Sunlight Electric
48 Shy Bear Brewing 89.00 Lewistown, PA USA 317 2013  
49 Abita Brewing Co. 85.00 New Orleans, LA USA 340 2013 South Coast Solar
50 Odell Brewery 76.80 Fort Collins, CO USA   2010  
51 Riggs Beer Co. 75.90 Urbana, IL USA 276 2017  
52 Birdsong Brewing 75.00 Charlotte, NC USA 220 2017  
53 Lakefront Brewery 70.00 Milwaukee, WI USA   2017 SunPeak
54 Rock Art Brewery 67.00 Morrisville, VT USA   2017  
55 Atlas Brew Works 67.50 Washington D.C. USA   2015 Solar Solution
56 Right Proper Brewing Co 65.00 Washington D.C. USA   2017  
57 Revolution Brewing 60.32 Chicago, IL USA 200 2016 Solar Service
58 KettleHouse Brewing 55.00 Misoula, MT USA 189 2018 Missoula Electric
59 Brewery Vivant 54.00 Grand Rapids, MI USA 192 2016 Renovo Energy
60 Two Goats Brewing 50.70 Hector, NY USA   2015 Renovus Solar
61 Brouwerij Hoop 50.50 Zaandijk Netherlands 300 2016 Jans Zon
62 Bright Brewery 50.00 Bright, VIC Australia 192 2016 Living Energy Solutions
63 Maine Beer Co. 50.00 Freeport, ME USA   2015  
64 Save the World Brewing Co 48.60 Marble Falls, TX USA   2017  
65 Throwback Brewery 48.00 Northhampton, NH USA   2017 ReVision Energy
66 Van Dieman Brewing 48.00 White Hills, TAS Australia   2016  
67 Fegley's Brewworks 42.00 Allentown, PA USA   2007  
68 New Glarus Brewing Co. 41.00 New Glarus, WI USA   2019 SunPeak
69 Dark Horse Brewing Co. 40.00 Marshall, MI USA 140 2014 Patriot Solar, CBSI
70 Short's Brewing Co. 40.00 Elk Rapids, MI USA   2015 Renovo Energy, CBSI,
71 The Alchemist 39.00 Waterbury, VT USA 112 2018  
72 Wise Man Brewing 34.00 Winston-Salem, NC USA 105 2018 Renu Energy Solutions
73 Worthy Brewing 34.00 Bend, OR USA 117 2012 Sunlight Solar
74 Allagash Brewing Co. 33.49 Portland, ME USA   2016 Heliotropic Technologies
75 East Forty Brewing 33.00 Blue Springs, MO USA   2018  
76 Able Seedhouse & Brewery 31.00 Minneapolis, MN USA >100 2017 Innovative Power Systems
77 Hanlons Brewery 30.00 Devon UK   2015 SunGift
78 Uinta Brewing 30.00 Salt Lake City, UT USA 126 2011  
79 Legal Remedy Brewing Co. 30.00 Rock Hill, SC USA   2016  
80 Young Henrys 29.90 Sydney, NSW Australia   2016  
81 Discretion Brewery 29.00 Soquel, CA USA   2014 Allterra Solar
82 Devil's Kettle Brewing 29.00 Athens, OH USA   2017 Appalachian Renewable Power
83 Innovation Brewing 28.50 Sylva, NC USA 100 2015  
84 Schlafy Bottleworks 25.00 St. Louis, MO USA 108 2012 Microgrid Energy
85 Upslope Brewing Co. 25.00 Boulder, CO USA   2018 Namaste Solar
86 Shaidzon Beer Co. 24.00 West Kingston, RI USA   2017  
87 Mad Mole Brewing 22.05 Wilmington, NC USA 65 2018 Cape Fear Solar Systems
88 Beer Garden Brewing 20.00 Port Lincoln, SA Austalia   2017  
89 Butte Brewing Co. 20.00 Butte, MT USA 80 2012  
90 Central Waters Brewing 20.00 Amherst, WI USA   2015  
91 Helios Brewing 19.80 Yeerongpilly, QLD Australia 59 2018  
92 Thorn Brewing Co. 19.80 San Diego, CA USA   2016 Efficient Solar Services w/ Clayco Electric
93 New Belgium Brewing Co. 19.00 West Asheville, NC USA 66 2016  
94 Arbor Brewing Co. 18.00 Ypsilanti, MI USA   2012  
95 Swamphead Brewery 17.00 Gainesville, FL USA   2015  
96 The Sawmill Brewery 16.20 Matakana New Zealand 54 2019 ZEN Energy
97 Canal Park Brewing Co. 16.00 Duluth, MN USA 38 2019  
98 Church End Brewery 15.00 Nuneaton UK   2014 TGE Group
99 Capital Brewery 13.00 Middleton, WI USA   2014 Full Spectrum
100 Butcherknife Brewing Co. 12.32 Steamboat Springs, CO USA   2015 Sunwise Solar
** Includes Energy Storage

 

Bright Brewery, Victoria, Australia

August 9 update of the full Top 100

Latest update: following the publication of the overview, engaged readers came forward with several solar-powered breweries which hadn't been on our radar yet. These German, Austrian and Swiss installations are included in the updated table below, with information from the exclusively German-languaged sources (which is also the reason why they hadn't popped up in our extensive searches). Upon a future update of the article, they will also be accounted for in the graphs, visuals and infographic.

Special thanks to Alexander Wolf (meteocontrol) for research and suggestions on the breweries in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

# Name Size (kWp) Location Country # panels year Installer
1 Heineken 5,808.00 Den Bosch Netherlands 16,524 2019 SolarAccess
2 Heineken 3,300.00 Massafra Italy 13,000 2012 SolarAccess
3 MillerCoors 3,200.00 Irwindale, CA USA > 10,000 2015 Solarcity
4 Sierra Nevada 2,600.00 Chico, CA USA 10,751 2011 Mitsubishi Electric
5 Tiger (Heineken) 2,196.00 Singapore Singapore 8,038 2016 REC Solar
6 Lagunitas Brewing Co. (Heineken) 2,100.00 Petaluma, CA USA 6,000 2017 Westcoast Solar Energy
7 Carlsberg 2,040.00 Dali China 8,006 2015 Zhuhai xingye green building technology co., LTD
8 Anheuser-Busch InBev 2,000.00 Yunnan Province China   2019 ACC
9 Alken-Maes (Heineken) 1,463.00 Alken Belgium   2011 SolarAccess
10 Frankfurter Brauhaus 1,300.00 Frankfurt Germany   2010 Ecostream
11 Brouwerij West 1,200.00 San Pedro, CA USA   2016  
12 Compañía Cervecera de Nicaragua 1,200.00 Managua Nicaragua 3,600 2018 Ecami
13 Namibia Breweries Limited 1,100.00 Windhoek Namibia 4,200 2013 DHYBRID Power Systems
14 Brauerei Rapp 1,052.00 Kutzenhausen Germany 4,140 2015 Greenovative
15 Feldschlößchen-Brauerei 1,024.00 Dresden Germany 4,400 2012 Solmotion
16 Heineken 1,020.00 Tadcaster UK 4,000 2014 SolarAccess
17 Villacher Brauerei 1,002.00 Villach Austria 3,286 2019 Kaernten Solar
18 Heineken 1,000.00 Bergamo Italy 3,984 2012 SolarAccess
19 Maui Brewing Company 1,000.00 Maui, HI USA   2013  
20 Jupiler (AB InBev) 1,000.00 Jupille Belgium 3,844 2015 Dauvister (Luminus)
21 Carlsberg 1,000.00 Utena Lithuania 3,703 2018 Modus Energy Solutions
22 Stone Brewery 962.00 Escondido, CA USA 1561 (brewery) 2008 Borrego Solar & IES
23 Sierra Nevada 710.00 Mills River, NC USA 2,200 2014 Kyocera
24 XXXX 690.00 Brisbane, QLD Australia 2,200 2019  
25 Duvel Moortgat 620.00 Puurs Belgium   2012 SolarAccess
26 Anheuser-Busch InBev 530.00 Newark, NJ USA 3,000 2014 Orion Energy Systems
27 Riverwalk Brewery Co. 500.00 Newburyport, MA USA      
28 Heineken 395.00 Karlovac Croatia 1,380 2018  
29 Püls-Bräu 500.00 Weismain Germany   2010 IBC Solar
30 Carlsberg 403.00 Alwar India 1,280 2016 CMES
31 Carlsberg 403.00 Dharuhera India 1,280 2016 CMES
32 Wieninger Brauerei 350.00 Teisendorf Germany   2011 Dante Energie & Service
33 Heineken 350.00 Meoqui Mexico   2018 Energon Solar, Onyx Solar
34 Privatbrauerei Hirt 349.00 Micheldorf Austria   2014  
35 Kona Brewing Company (new facility) 336.00 Kona, HI USA   2019 Holu Energy
36 Highland Brewing Company 324.00 Asheville, NC USA 1,045 2015 Ashburn Builders
37 Brauerei Ottakringer 310.00 Vienna Austria 1,147 2018  
38 Brauerei Kühbach 300.00 Kühbach Germany   2010  
39 New Belgium Brewing Company 300.00 Fort Collins, CO USA 1,235 2010 Namaste Solar
40 Murauer Brauerei 300.00 Klagenfurt Austria   2017  
41 Nod Hill Brewery 287.00 Ridgefield, CT USA   2019  
42 Golden Road Brewing (AB InBev) 270.00 Anaheim, CA USA   2019 Revel Energy
43 Brauerei Hacklberg 250.00 Hutthurm Germany   2009 PRAML
44 Bitburger Brauerei 238.00 Bitburg Germany   2017 Avantag Energy
45 Double Mountain Brewery 238.00 Hood River, OR USA   2018 Competitive Commercial Roofing
46 Carlsberg 236.00 Aurangabad India 750 2017 Sunterace
47 Kona Brewing Company 229.00 Kona, HI USA 880 2010 Sunetric
48 Boulevard Brewing Company 200.00 Kansas City, MO USA   2011  
49 Moonraker Brewing Co. 200.00 Auburn, CA USA   2016  
50 Estrella de Levante 245.80 Espinardo Spain   2019  
51 Cerveceria Nacional Dominicana 228.00 Bavaro Dominican Republic   2015  
52 Brauerei Baar 170.00 Baar Switzerland 600 2018  
53 Bear Republic Brewery 166.80 Cloverdale, CA USA   2014 North State Solar Energy
54 Banks Barbados Breweries 165.75 Bridgetown Barbados   2013  
55 Schlossbrauerei Maxlrain 157.25 Tuntenhausen Germany   2011 Ökovolt
56 SweetWater Brewing 157.00 Atlanta, GA USA 750 2012 -
57 St Austell Brewery 150.00 Cornwall UK 600 2013 ZLC Energy
58 Arcadia Brewing Company 150.00 Kalamazoo, MI USA 536 2016 Helios Solar
59 Barrington Brewing Company 144.00 Great Barrington, MA USA 480 2016  
60 Flying Fish Brewing Company 129.00 Somerdale, NJ USA 463 2011  
61 Anderson Valley Brewing Company 125.00 Boonville, CA USA 768 2006 -
62 Pizza Port Brewing Company 117.00 Carlsbad, CA USA   2013 Sullivan Solar Power
63 Single Speed Brewing Company 103.00 Waterloo, IA USA   2016 SunPeak
64 Ale Asylum 100.00 Madison, WI USA 480 2015  
65 Stone & Wood Brewery 100.00 Murwillumbah, NSW Australia   2017  
66 The Australian Brewery 100.00 Rouse Hill, NSW Australia 277 2018 Autonomous Energy
67 Alamo Beer Co 100.00 San Antonio. TX USA 256 2015&2019 One80 Solar
68 4 Pines (AB InBev) 100.00 Sydney, NSW Australia   2019  
69 Heads of Noosa Brewing Co. 99.00 Noosa, QLD Australia 300 2019 Celtic Solar
70 Stomping Ground 96.30 Melbourne, VIC Australia   2018  
71 Grand Ridge Brewery 96.00 Gippsland, VIC Australia 384 2014  
72 Jackie O's Brewery 94.00 Athens, OH USA 298 2015 Third Sun Solar
73 North Coast Brewing 92.20 Fort Bragg, CA USA 282 2013 Sunlight Electric
74 Photos Photiades Brewery 91.20 Nicosia Cyprus   2018  
75 Shy Bear Brewing 89.00 Lewistown, PA USA 317 2013  
76 Abita Brewing Company 85.00 New Orleans, LA USA 340 2013 South Coast Solar
77 Odell Brewery 76.80 Fort Collins, CO USA   2010  
78 Riggs Beer Company 75.90 Urbana, IL USA 276 2017  
79 Birdsong Brewing 75.00 Charlotte, NC USA 220 2017  
80 Sivar Brewing Company 73.00 San Salvador El Salvador      
81 Lakefront Brewery 70.00 Milwaukee, WI USA   2017 SunPeak
82 Central Cervecera de Colombia (Heineken) 70.00 Sesquilé Colombia 256 2019  
83 Brauerei Maierbräu 68.11 Altomünster Germany   2014  
84 Rock Art Brewery 67.00 Morrisville, VT USA   2017  
85 Atlas Brew Works 67.50 Washington D.C. USA   2015 Solar Solution
86 Lao Brewery 65.01 Vientiane Laos   2019  
87 Right Proper Brewing Co 65.00 Washington D.C. USA   2017  
88 Brauerei Schiltern 64.50 Schiltern Austria   2016 Nikko Photovoltaik
89 Revolution Brewing 60.32 Chicago, IL USA 200 2016 Solar Service
90 KettleHouse Brewing 55.00 Misoula, MT USA 189 2018 Missoula Electric
91 Brewery Vivant 54.00 Grand Rapids, MI USA 192 2016 Renovo Energy
92 Krautheimer Brauerei 53.80 Volkach Germany 221 2013  
93 Two Goats Brewing 50.70 Hector, NY USA   2015 Renovus Solar
94 Brouwerij Hoop 50.50 Zaandijk Netherlands 300 2016 Jans Zon
95 Maine Beer Co. 50.00 Freeport, ME USA   2015  
96 Bright Brewery 50.00 Bright, VIC Australia 192 2016 Living Energy Solutions
97 Save the World Brewing Co 48.60 Marble Falls, TX USA   2017  
98 Van Dieman Brewing 48.00 White Hills, TAS Australia   2016  
99 Throwback Brewery 48.00 Northhampton, NH USA   2017 ReVision Energy
100 Fegley's Brewworks 42.00 Allentown, PA USA   2007  
** Includes Energy Storage

 

Copyright © 2019 Solarplaza International BV. All rights reserved.
Research & Writing: Tom van der Linden
Additional research: Alexander Wolf
Layout & Design: Aliana Bertolo
This overview was made using public internet sources and some direct data from the listed breweries. We do not claim this to be a complete, nor fully accurate overview and are very much open to feedback and suggestions on improvements. We do not hold rights to the data and photos. All graphs, illustrations and the full infographic are copyrighted content of Solarplaza International BV.

Stay on top of the global solar market by joining one of our upcoming events.