LONDON – BP Amoco announced that approximately 200 of its service stations worldwide are to incorporate solar power, the largest single project of its kind ever undertaken. Solar electricity will help meet the power needs of all new service stations to be built in the U.K., Australia, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Japan, Portugal, and Spain. Solar installations will also be incorporated into prototype sites in France and the U.S. as part of an extended pilot program.

The first phase of the two-year program will see up to 400 solar panels installed on each canopy of 200 service stations across 11 countries in a $50 million, 3.5 megawatt project, saving around 3,500 tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year. As a result, BP Amoco will become one of the world’s largest users of solar power. It is already one of the world’s largest manufacturers of solar cells and modules.

The level of power generated will vary from site to site, but at each the solar panels on the canopy above the pumps will generate more clean energy than is consumed by the site’s lighting needs and the power requirements of the pumps below. The installations will be connected to the local electricity networks and will allow any excess electricity to be exported during the day and the shortfall imported at night.

The announcement follows a successful pilot program at 19 sites in Europe, Australia, Malaysia, and the U.S.

“Our own use of solar power is an example of BP Amoco’s commitment to tackling the issue of climate change,” said BP Amoco CEO Sir John Browne. “Not only will BP Amoco be one of the largest producers of solar photovoltaic cells in the world, but it will also be one of the largest single users of solar power.

“By installing solar panels at such a large number of sites across the world we will also learn and add to expertise in handling issues of grid connection, contribute to the standardization of equipment and drive down costs for all of our solar customers.”

The solar installation at each site will have a maximum power output of 20kWp – more than eight times the size of a domestic system supplying the electricity needs of an energy-efficient home. The amount of electricity generated will vary from site to site, but on average each solar installation will provide the equivalent of enough power to run 55 television sets for five hours a day, every day of the year.