Saint Nicholas can now boast green credentials, having just been informed they will be having new solar panels installed on their roof, making them the Principality’s first solar-powered church.

As part of the energy transition programme put forth by the government, Saint-Nicholas Church in Fontvieille will soon have 72 photovoltaic panels placed on the roof. These collective panels will produce 19MWh of electricity that will be tied directly into the church’s power lines.

This will make the church 100% energy self-sufficient and will even produce “spare” electricity which will be passed onto the Fontvieille post office. In environmental terms, these new panels will reduce CO2 atmospheric output by an extraordinary 1.55 tonnes per year.  

Once Saint Nicholas’s is completed, the Monaco Building Maintenance Service will be busy turning several other sites into eco-friendly endeavours. Next up will be installations at Fontvielle School, Villa Paloma Museum, SMEAUX, Sacred Heart Church the Children’s Home and Villa Floerstine, which will be the future new home to the Department of Labour.

Monaco’s energy transition plan is committed to lowering the total greenhouse gas emissions in the Principality by 50% by the year 2030 compared to 1990 levels, and to reach a carbon neutral state by 2050. Reliable non-polluting energy sources are only one cog in the wheel toward this goal. The other two parts include finding and using  alternative transportation modes and the lessening of general waste.