EDP Brasil built three photovoltaic power plants with capacity to produce more than 11 thousand MWh/year to supply clean energy to McDonald's restaurants in Brazil. These plants were installed in the State of São Paulo and in Minas Gerais and have a total installed capacity of 6.6 MWp. Over the next 12 years, they will exclusively serve 28 McDonald's restaurants and seven kiosks in these two Brazilian states, where the chain is operated by Arcos Dorados, the brand responsible for franchising in Latin America.

Together, the new plants will avoid the emission of 725 tons of CO2 per year, the equivalent of planting five thousand trees. In addition, the volume of energy generated by the plants will receive the I-REC (International REC Standard) certification, a global system by which proves that the energy consumed by a customer comes from renewable sources. 

The more than16,200 photovoltaic panels have tracking technology, which allows the modules to move according to the angle of the sun's rays, for a better use of the solar radiation. 

Also in Portugal, McDonald's has chosen EDP in its sustainability strategy. In addition to energy efficiency solutions, it chose EDP Comercial as a partner for electric mobility, with the installation of more than 150 fast charging points in restaurants from north to south of the country, including the islands.

Growth of solar energy in Brazil

Solar production is among the strategic axes for EDP's growth in Brazil, which aims to reach 1GWp in installed capacity by 2025. With the plants developed for Arcos Dorados, the portfolio of contracted solar energy exceeds 244 MWp, of which 112.6 MWp in distributed production and 132.3 MWp in centralized production.

The use of energy produced by solar plants contributes to Arcos Dorados reaching the goals established in the Revenue of the Future, the company's ESG performance strategy, such as the reduction of 36% of greenhouse gas emissions from its operation, as well as 31% of emissions from its entire chain, by 2030. These goals are linked to the first issued by the company in April this year, a move that reinforces its commitments and makes it the first in the industry to associate a financial instrument with environmental objectives.
 

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