Retail chain COOP honoured as an energy conscious company

The store modernisation efforts of the COOP Economic Group were rewarded with the Energy Conscious Company certification trademark. COOP received the prize at the 9th Virtual Power Station (VEP) award ceremony. Hungarian Innovation and Efficiency Nonprofit Kft. launched this programme in 2011 to recognise the efforts of companies which want to utilise energy more efficiently. The COOP Economic Group earned the certification trademark by making voluntary pledges to increase the energy efficiency of the group. The retail chain also plans to increase the share of renewable energy in its operations: in 2018-2019 solar power domestic-scale power plant (HMKE) systems will be built on the stores of 10 franchise partners.

_{Kornél Malich, head of business development at CO-OP Hungary Zrt. holding the certification document}

Géza Tóth
CEO
CO-OP Hungary

CO-OP Hungary Zrt.’s CEO Géza Tóth told: the company’s goal is to extend the energy saving solutions – putting glass doors on refrigerators, installing LED lighting, modernising cooling and heating systems, placing solar panels on store rooftops – to the majority of their 2,700 stores. The retail chain was the first in Hungary to start collecting used cooking oil in stores. Shoppers get a HUF 80 coupon for each litre they take back; at the moment this is done in nearly 300 shops all over Hungary. VEP operations director Dr Balázs Mezősi added that COOP’s results show that the group is dedicated to use energy efficiently and to make its operations sustainable. (x)