WHS and Lodestone Energy sign solar deal

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To: NZX Limited
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Auckland, 19 September 2023

The Warehouse Group and Lodestone Energy sign historic solar deal

The Warehouse Group and Lodestone Energy have signed a historic long-term agreement that will
see more than 260 sites across Aotearoa New Zealand become powered by Lodestone Energy’s new
solar plan as early as 2026.

This agreement will apply to all New Zealand sites where The Warehouse Group purchases electricity
directly. This includes sites occupied by The Warehouse, Warehouse Stationery, Noel Leeming,
Torpedo7 stores and its Distribution Centres and Store Support Offices.

The Warehouse Group’s Chief Executive Nick Grayston says he is delighted to be working with
Lodestone Energy on this innovative solar agreement.

“We have ambitious sustainability goals, including a plan to reach zero emissions in our operations by
2040. Moving to solar electricity will help us achieve this goal years in advance.

“We’ll gradually transition our Aotearoa New Zealand sites to Lodestone Energy solar farms and by
the end of December 2026, we anticipate we’ll have eliminated close to 100% of all our New Zealand
electricity emissions. This will avoid around 5,300 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year.

“It is another important step in realising the Group’s commitment to making sustainable living easy
and affordable for our customers and the communities we serve,” says Mr Grayston.

In addition to significant environmental upsides, the agreement will deliver flexibility and provide
financial benefits to The Warehouse Group through a competitive pricing structure. The deal is
pioneering an innovative path for power purchase agreements.

The Warehouse Group’s Chief Sustainability Officer David Benattar says the agreement with
Lodestone Energy is a critical milestone in achieving the Group’s Scope 2 emissions targets.

“The deal will remove virtually all of our Scope 2 emissions. This means we can now shift our focus
towards accelerating our Scope 3 emission reductions to deliver lower emissions products to our
customers.

“The use of renewable electricity certificates will ensure that electricity consumed at our sites will be
matched and verified against solar electricity produced by Lodestone solar farms. This mechanism will
ensure that our arrangement with Lodestone contributes to the country’s green energy transition,”
says Mr Benattar.

Lodestone Energy’s Managing Director Gary Holden says this is just one example of the bold deals the
company is looking to make to help reduce the country’s dependence on fossil fuels.

“The Warehouse Group’s operational hours are a great match for solar energy. When their stores are
at their busiest, the sun’s energy is at its peak.

“With the sophistication of the New Zealand market, this arrangement is akin to locating solar panels
on top of The Warehouse Group sites but at a lower cost, with faster deployment and without the
limitation of the physical space of a rooftop.

“You do not get many opportunities to work with companies this serious about sustainability and we
are very proud to help the Group’s work toward this milestone,” says Mr Holden.

Lodestone Energy, working with a retail service provider, will implement market-leading metering and
billing techniques to enable Lodestone’s optimally located solar farm production to offset the demand
of The Warehouse Group’s stores from Kaitaia to Invercargill.

Other efforts by the Group to reduce its carbon impact include reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions by
41.5% since FY20, investing $1.65 million in gold standard carbon offset projects, and making its
passenger fleet 100% electric.


ENDS


Contact details regarding this announcement:
Julian Light
Corporate Affairs
021 243 8528
julian.light@twgroup.co.nz

Authorised by:
Erin Vercoe
General Counsel and Company Secretary
erin.vercoe@thewarehouse.co.nz