The groundbreaking supply agreement with Ecotricity will see AEG’s portfolio of UK venues powered by the cleanest, greenest energy, including The O2
AEG Europe, the European subsidiary of global sports and live entertainment leader AEG, has announced a landmark agreement that will make its UK venues the first in the industry to run on the country’s greenest energy – setting a new standard for energy provision across the live entertainment sector. The new supply agreement combines PPAs (Power Purchase Agreements) with a 100% renewable energy supply, backed by hourly-matched REGOs (Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin), through a pioneering collaboration with Ecotricity.
The PPAs allocate specific renewable energy assets to AEG’s world-class portfolio of live entertainment venues in the UK, including The O2, indigo at The O2, Eventim Apollo, Watford Colosseum, and University of Wolverhampton at The Halls. These venues will operate predominantly off the deepest green energy generated by solar and hydro assets, which not only provide the highest level of transparency, but withstands audit-level scrutiny.
Within the live industry and beyond, AEG’s investment accelerates the growth of renewable energy on the National Grid, creating a ripple effect that reaches far past individual venues.
Sam Booth, AEG Europe’s Director of Sustainability explains, 'PPAs are widely recognised as the gold standard in energy procurement, and we’re proud to play a role in launching this first-of-its-kind agreement. It marks a significant milestone in the ongoing journey to decarbonise the live entertainment industry, and we’re pleased to help drive this progress.'
Dale Vince OBE, Founder at Ecotricity, said, 'This is big news for live music, as venues across Britain – including London’s iconic The O2 – will be powered by deep green energy. AEG have already been working with us to bring clean power to outdoor festivals like All Points East and LIDO earlier this summer, with our Grid Faeries x Ecotricity battery. Now they’re going even further – bringing green power indoors. It’s a major step forward, and a proper milestone on the road to greening up the live entertainment world.'
AEG have long been considered at the forefront of advancing sustainability in the live industry, having implemented several trailblazing initiatives across a global network of venues, festivals, and events. Most notably, this includes hosting the world’s first carbon removed events at The O2 in February 2024 which saw the extraction of 545.9 tonnes of carbon across four shows – the equivalent yearly electricity usage of 395 average homes. This not only acted as proof of concept for a commercially viable, wholly sustainable model of hosting live events, where the fan experience remains best-in-class, but inspired further action and conversations across the wider industry.
Across its network of world-class venues, AEG Europe is continuously making investments in sustainable initiatives, including lower-carbon food menus, permanent reusable cup schemes and cup-washing machines, biodegradable serve ware and several other carbon-reduction projects. Continued efforts also extend to AEG’s award-winning festivals, where several initiatives have helped to dramatically reduce environmental impacts and helped educate attendees, including a carbon labelling programme for food vendors.
To learn more about AEG Europe’s sustainability practices, visit https://aegeurope.com/sustainability/
Original announcement link
Source: AEG
