Images: Manchester City
Manchester City has announced plans to make the City Football Academy and Joie Stadium one of the largest producers of renewable energy in world football.
The reigning Premier League champion today (Friday) revealed it is seeking planning approval from Manchester City Council for the installation of 10,887 solar panels which will generate up to 4.39 MWh of renewable energy every year.
While the self-supplied energy will completely offset the annual usage of the City Football Academy training complex, in which Joie Stadium is housed, the power will also be shared with Etihad Stadium. In doing so, the project is set to form a key part of the club’s efforts to be carbon net zero by 2030.
More than 3,000 panels will be located on the roof of the 7,000-capacity Joie Stadium, which is home to Manchester City Women, while a further 3,942 will be located on the roofs of other facilities on site such as the First Team and Academy Building.
An additional 3,830 panels will be installed on frames over footpaths and pitch-side areas of the City Football Academy. Subject to planning approval, the panels will be fully operational by the end of 2024, and they will be installed and managed by Manchester-based renewable energy developer, Clearvolt.
The project builds on City’s long-standing commitment to using clean energy, with the club purchasing 100% renewable electricity under a power agreement for the past eight years.
Since being built 10 years ago on former industrial wasteland, the City Football Academy has gone on to achieve the gold standard under Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (L.E.E.D) guidelines.
In addition to being a state-of-the-art home to the men’s, women’s and academy training facilities, plus the largest purpose-built stadium in the Women’s Super League (WSL), the site also houses a wide array of ecology and wildlife and has been commended by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).
Manchester City’s director of sustainability, Pete Bradshaw, said: “It is with great excitement that we can reveal our plans to completely offset the power required to run the day-to-day operations of the City Football Academy, by becoming one of football’s largest producers of self-supplied, renewable energy.
“Over many years, we have adopted increasingly sustainable practices across the club, ranging from the removal of all single-use plastic on a matchday to reusing rainwater and recycling more than 70% of our waste.
“As we look ahead on our roadmap to being net carbon zero by 2030, we know that the production and consumption of renewable energy has an incredibly important role to play, which is why we are delighted at the prospect of installing over 10,800 solar panels at our home in Manchester.”
In January, Manchester City Women filed a planning application to Manchester City Council for the development of a purpose-built training facility at City Football Academy.
In October, City received the final green light for its Etihad Stadium expansion project. Approved proposals include several connected all-weather facilities, fully integrated into the stadium, centred around an expanded North Stand with one larger, single upper tier above the existing lower tier, increasing capacity from the current 53,400 to 61,968.
Above the upper tier there will be a sky bar with views overlooking the pitch as well as a stadium roof walk experience. A covered City Square fan zone, with capacity for 3,000 people and a wide variety of food and drink outlets, a new club shop, museum, workspace and a 400-bed hotel will also be constructed as part of the club’s development.
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