Already respected for its impressive environmental and social awareness ethos, the Vineyard Hotel & Spa’s Conference Centre will be the first conference centre in South Africa to run on ‘Green Power’

Supplied by GreenX Energy (www.greenxenergy.com), the Green Power strategy in the hotel’s Conference Centre is a key component of the overall plan for more sustainable operations and carbon emission reductions at the Hotel.

GreenX Energy will supply Renewable Energy Certificates (REC’s), which provide the certification of the Green Power for the hotel. Every MWh of Green Power saves coal and water and prevents the emission of ash, air pollutants and carbon emissions.

The Renewable Energy Certficate (REC) approach is used in Europe and the USA and the South African Department of Energy (DOE) is developing this approach for South Africa in association with the current Green Power suppliers and producers. The REC’s provide a certified link between the Conference Centre and the Renewable Energy generator. One of the main Renewable Energy generators, which currently registers and sells the Green Power certificates through GreenX Energy is the Umzimkulu Sugar Mill in KwaZulu Natal. The mill uses ‘bagasse’, the fibrous waste in the sugar industry, to generate Renewable Energy.

The commitment to Green Power by the Vineyard Hotel & Spa shows leadership and supports national and international policy on renewable energy and climate change mitigation.

Overall, Vineyard Conference Centre customers will be able to declare their event as being run on Green Power and to claim the carbon emission reductions associated with energy consumption at the event, without having to resort to carbon offsetting.