HSBC Canary Wharf HQ goes solar

The bank says the photovoltaic panels - which are manufactured by Sharp Solar - cover 617 square metres and will generate approximately 1,550,000 kilowatt hours of green electricity over the building's lease, enough energy to power 20 average UK homes per year.

Simon Martin, head, group corporate sustainability, HSBC, says: "If every headquarter building around the world invested in solar panels, it would significantly accelerate the transition towards a low carbon economy and we hope to become a catalyst for this."

HSBC says it has already decreased its energy consumption at its HQ building by seven per cent - or 20% per full time employee - since 2004.

The bank plans to save a further three per cent - 1,750,000 kilowatt hours - of its total energy consumption at the building over the next two years through measures such as improving its air conditioning system.

The measures are part of a $90 million programme launched last year by the bank, which has been carbon neutral since 2005.

In January HSBC came out on top in a study that examined how global banks are tackling the risks and challenges posed by global warming and climate change. The study of 40 global banks evaluated how each institution is addressing climate change in five areas - board of director oversight, management performance, public disclosure, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, accounting and strategic planning.