Maersk Ruakura cold store becomes first to achieve New Zealand’s highest Green Star rating
A.P. Moller – Maersk’s integrated cold chain facility at the Ruakura Superhub has been awarded a 6 Star Green Star NZ Design & As-Built rating by the New Zealand Green Building Council (NZGBC). This is the first cold storage facility in New Zealand to achieve the highest sustainability standard in commercial construction.
Opened in February 2024, the Ruakura facility represents Maersk’s biggest infrastructure investment in New Zealand. It enables customers to seamlessly transfer goods between various transport modes, including rail, road and ocean, along the strategic Auckland-Tauranga trade corridor. Delivered by Apollo Projects, the 18,000m² facility was designed and built with energy efficiency and emissions reduction at its core.
A.P. Møller-Maersk
This achievement underscores our dedication to decarbonisation and innovation across both industrial development and supply chain logistics. Cold chain logistics play a vital role in global food supply chains and represent a significant opportunity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We’re proud to support our customers in lowering the emissions footprint from production to plate.
Green Star is an internationally recognised sustainability rating system that aims to transform the way buildings and communities are designed, constructed, and operated to improve environmental efficiencies. It provides a rating of up to six stars based on a building’s key sustainability credentials.
This facility is a clear example of how high-performance, lower greenhouse gas industrial buildings can and should be delivered in New Zealand. It sets a strong precedent for the sector.
The Maersk Ruakura Cold Store incorporates several advanced decarbonisation and energy-efficiency technologies, including a transcritical CO₂ refrigeration system that captures and reuses waste heat, condensate recovery for cooling tower misters, and rainwater harvesting to reduce reliance on potable water. The facility also uses Lithium Reach and Forklifts for improved energy efficiency and low-emission operation, and a rooftop solar array generating over 1.52MW of renewable energy for onsite use.
This milestone reflects what’s possible when innovation, decarbonisation, and operational excellence are embedded from the outset. We are proud to collaborate with Maersk in delivering design and build projects that support the future of decarbonisation in logistics.
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