Australia's Mars Petcare makes pioneering renewables commitment

Mars Petcare facility at Wodonga in Victoria has announced plans to become what they claim will be Australia's first large-scale steam-based manufacturing site to operate entirely on renewable energy by 2026.  

In partnership with Australian national science agency CSIRO, the facility plans to switch to 100% renewable power which will include solar and thermal energy technologies and hydrogen.

At the Mars Wodonga facility, states CSIRO, 25% of the site’s energy usage is electricity and 75% is from gas burnt for process heat.

While the electricity emissions are easily displaced through grid-connected renewable energy purchases, displacement of the process heat emissions has not been so easy. 

To address this and to allow Mars Wodonga to reach its renewables targets, the company implemented an AUS$39 million (US$26 million) Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) project.

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The 18MW parabolic trough CST plant, partially funded by ARENA, was installed and provides between four and 10 hours of thermal energy storage.

The project also includes an electrical thermal energy system (eTES) component which was installed in 2023 by Graphite Energy. It allows the facility to use renewable electricity during off-peak times to generate and store heat that can produce steam at any time - a greener and more cost-effective alternative to gas.

Dominic Zaal, CSIRO project team leader commented on the initiative: "Since we first spoke with Mars in 2019 about their ambitions to decarbonise their process heat operations, we’ve been on a journey of discovery together. 

"We’ve been their renewable heat technology partner from day one. So, it’s very exciting to now see them deliver a completely renewable solution for their operation by 2026.

"From the beginning of our discussions, CST was identified as the option that would deliver the highest abatement for Mars Wodonga’s available onsite land.

"Although the upfront costs were high, CST was able to generate more renewable energy per square metre than any other technology," concluded Zaal. 

In addition, Mars recently announced a partnership with Australian Gas Infrastructure Group (AGIG) to purchase Renewable Gas Guarantee of Origin certificates at Hydrogen Park Murray Valley.

CSIRO states that this will displace over 10% of Mars Australia’s total gas consumption, which includes Mars Wodonga.

“For Mars, the CST and eTES systems are complementary renewable heat technologies,” said Craig Sargeant, general manager, Mars Petcare Australia and New Zealand.

“With the addition of the AGIG hydrogen purchase, and Mars Australia’s existing 100% renewable electricity agreement, the Wodonga facility will deploy a 100% renewable energy solution within two years.”

CSIRO states that in Australia, industry accounts for 57% of total annual energy use, with process heat accounting for more than 50%. This makes long-term collaboration with the likes of Mars critical to boost sustainability in Australia's manufacturing sector.