Mercury Marine has underscored its commitment to sustainability with two new small-scale solar installations announced for its Australian operations. 

Mercury is installing two new 100kW solar systems – one at its Australian/New Zealand head office in Dandenong South (Victoria) and another at the company’s Boating Lifestyle Adventure (BLA) office in Murarrie, Brisbane (Queensland).

The Dandenong installation is projected to generate approximately 48 percent of the office’s electricity needs, preventing 132 tonnes of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere annually. The Murarrie office solar system will on average meet 50 percent of the office’s power demand – 100 during peak times. The system will generate approximately 142,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, enough to power around 20 homes for a full year.

The continued investment in small-scale solar follows the success of a 40kW system installed at Mercury’s Queensland office in Coomera last year. The system has been generating 60 percent of the facility’s electricity needs.

In addition to solar energy, Mercury is now trialling a Waste Management System at its Dandenong South office in line with the company’s goal to have 50 percent of its global distribution centres transition to zero-waste-to-landfill facilities by 2025.

The objective is to recycle more than 90 percent of the waste generated at the Dandenong facility – significantly reducing landfill waste – with the aim to meet the recycling target by the first half of 2024. Mercury plans to extend the waste management system to three additional sites this year and is also actively exploring ways to make outboard packaging fully recyclable.

In 2023, Mercury launched the next step in electric propulsion with the Avator 7.5e in January and subsequent 20e and 35e models in August. With no exhaust fumes and zero direct emissions, these engines transform the boating experience and have a positive effect on the environment. Combined with the fact that Avator uses many recyclable or reusable components makes it is Mercury’s most environmentally friendly outboard.

The move is in line with Mercury Marine’s stated commitment to meeting its fiscal responsibilities while developing and manufacturing products in a manner that is safe, environmentally responsible, protective of the earth’s natural resources and conducive to improved quality of life for all its stakeholders.