Solar Strategies in Practice: Retail giant Aeon Mall’s path to net zero with solar at the core

Edition 2 of the “Solar Strategies in Practice” Series: Spotlighting corporate leaders who integrate solar strategies into their sustainability engagement and core business models.

Aeon Mall anchors its sustainability strategy in its “Life Design Developer” philosophy and the Aeon Decarbonization Vision 2050, which commits the group to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. A key milestone is the goal of operating all directly managed malls on 100 percent renewable electricity. As of now, Aeon has already transitioned around 55 percent of its electricity use to renewable sources, combining on-site solar generation with renewable procurement schemes such as certificates and contracts.

While many people see empty rooftops, Aeon’s leadership recognized 18 million square meters of untapped potential. What began as a sustainability initiative has transformed into a sophisticated profit center, generating double-digit returns across three continents. This is the story of how Asia's retail giant built a renewable energy empire -one rooftop at a time.

Aeon's green profit philosophy: How the company transformed sustainability into a profit center

In a boardroom decision that shook Japan's corporate establishment, Aeon Mall executives made an audacious bet in 2018 (source: Tokyo, Oct 26, 2023 - Retail Times): transform sustainability from a cost center into a profit-generating powerhouse. Five years later, this strategy now contributes 12% to operating profits - with analysts projecting 23% by 2028.

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Since launching its solar strategy in 2017, the company has demonstrated how renewable energy directly improves business fundamentals. Solar’s contribution to operating profit has grown from just 0.9 percent in 2017 to 12.1 percent in 2023, with projections of more than 23 percent by 2028. At the same time, carbon credits have created a new revenue stream worth $28 million in 2023 and expected to exceed $110 million within five years. Energy costs per square foot have fallen from $9.20 to $5.80 and are projected to reach $3.10, strengthening long-term competitiveness. Tenant retention has also improved, rising from 78 to 92 percent and forecast at 97 percent by 2028, showing that sustainability investments deliver not only cost savings and new revenues but also greater business stability.

How was that possible?

Aeon’s growing solar contribution to operating profit stem from embedding PV directly into its business model. Large-scale rooftop and on-site systems across malls, supermarkets, and logistics centres have cut one of Aeon’s biggest expenses: electricity. Lower energy bills flow straight through to higher margins. At the same time, the company monetises renewable energy certificates and carbon credits, creating a new revenue stream worth USD 28 million in 2023 and projected to exceed USD 110 million by 2028. For tenants, access to cheaper, greener electricity increases the attractiveness of Aeon’s properties, boosting retention rates from 78 to 92 percent and reducing costly churn. Combined with the brand value of visible ESG leadership, these effects explain how solar and sustainability measures directly strengthen Aeon’s operating profit.

The financial results are only part of the story. Aeon’s solar model also creates measurable benefits for the tenants and customers that keep its malls thriving

The tenant and customer impact

Aeon’s solar program also creates tangible benefits for its tenants and customers, which in turn reinforces the financial stability of its malls. By generating on-site renewable power, Aeon can offer tenants access to cheaper, greener electricity compared with grid tariffs, lowering their operating costs while helping them reduce Scope 2 emissions. This has been formalized in Aeon’s 'Green Store' certification scheme, which allows anchor tenants such as Uniqlo and other international brands to market themselves as operating in low-carbon facilities, supporting their own ESG reporting. The impact is visible in Aeon’s performance data: tenant retention rates improved from 78 percent in 2017 to 92 percent in 2023, with analysts projecting 97 percent by 2028 (Aeon IR / Nomura Research). At the customer-facing level, Aeon’s sustainability branding, including visible solar rooftops and LEED or GreenRE certifications at sites such as Aeon Mall Meanchey in Cambodia, enhances foot traffic and loyalty by aligning with consumer expectations for environmentally responsible shopping environments.

Aeon’s broad international portfolio

The progress is visible across the company’s international portfolio: in Malaysia, Aeon has deployed 78 MW of rooftop solar capacity across multiple malls, generating about 99 GWh annually and offsetting more than 70,000 tons of CO₂ each year. In Vietnam, Aeon Mall Ha Dong operates an 850 kWp rooftop system that cuts electricity use by nearly 3 percent. In Cambodia, the Sen Sok City Mall has expanded its rooftop solar from 1.03 MWp to 3.23 MWp, making it the largest mall installation in the country. In Indonesia, Aeon Mall BSD City generates over 1,100 MWh annually, while in Japan, decentralized “community solar plants” already supply dozens of malls with clean power. Taken together, these efforts show how Aeon is embedding solar not just as an ecological measure, but as a central driver of operational savings, lower emissions, and stronger long-term competitiveness.

Japan: Aeon’s mall in Sendai Minami turns 28,000 panels into a profit engine

Aeon breakthrough came with the Sendai Minami complex retrofit:

• 28,000 solar panels installed across 7.2 acres
• 6.2 GWh annual generation, equivalent to powering 1,700 Japanese homes
• Dual revenue streams: 40% self-consumption savings plus grid export income

The real innovation was structural. Beyond converting passive roofs into active power generators, Aeon leveraged regional policy schemes and ESG monetization as crucial drivers of transformation. By implementing Japan’s dual-track system, the company developed a sophisticated FiT/FiP hybrid model, securing a 20-year fixed price under the FiT (Feed-in Tariff) scheme of ￥14/kWh, equivalent to €0.082/kWh, plus an FiP (Feed-in Premium) of￥3.2/kWh, equivalent to €0.02/kWh during peak demand hours. Combined with tax optimization under the Green Investment Deduction Scheme, the project’s payback period was reduced from nine years to just 5.2 years.

Beyond this single flagship site, Aeon has scaled rooftop and community solar into a nationwide program that is central to its RE100 progress.

Community solar in Japan supports RE100 advancement

In its home market of Japan, Aeon has coupled mall rooftops with a broader 'Machi no Hatsudensho' (Community Power Plant) initiative that decentralizes solar generation across the regions where it operates. By fiscal 2023, Aeon REIT had established around 740 local power plants supplying about 30 malls, with plans to expand to 1,390 sites feeding 60 malls in the coming years (Aeon REIT, 2024 ESG Report). These installations support Aeon’s target of sourcing 100 percent renewable electricity for all directly managed malls, a milestone the company reports is already more than halfway achieved with approximately 55 percent renewable electricity in its consumption mix (Aeon Mall ESG Databook 2024). By embedding both rooftop and community-based solar into its core energy model, Aeon strengthens local resilience, reduces its carbon footprint, and positions its Japanese malls as frontrunners in the country’s energy transition.

Vietnam: LONGi modules power Aeon Mall Hai Phong’s 534 kWp flagship rooftop solar project

When Aeon expanded its operations into Vietnam, the company’s engineers deliberately timed their rooftop solar projects to benefit from the country’s most favorable renewable incentive scheme. Vietnam introduced a rooftop feed-in tariff of roughly $0.0838 per kilowatt-hour, which created highly attractive conditions for early adopters. Aeon secured these terms in 2020 and achieved a notably short payback period of just over five years for its first projects.

The flagship initiative took place at Aeon Mall Hai Phong Le Chan, where a 534 kWp rooftop solar system was installed across 6,000 square meters of roof space above the cinema area. Built with LONGi modules and durable hot-dip galvanized mounting structures, the system was designed for long-term performance under Vietnam’s tropical conditions. The installation generates around 582.9 MWh of renewable electricity per year, which offsets approximately 500 tonnes of CO₂ emissions annually.

For Aeon, the Hai Phong project was not only a proof of concept but also a cornerstone in its broader Asia-wide decarbonization roadmap. By leveraging favorable policy windows, partnering with technology leaders such as LONGi, and embedding solar into its mall infrastructure, Aeon demonstrated how sustainability commitments can translate into strong financial returns, tangible carbon reductions, and long-term operational resilience.

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In September 2024, the rooftop solar system at Aeon Mall Hai Phong withstood the full force of Super Typhoon Yagi that devastated much of the city. The system remained intact and fully operational, demonstrating how the combination of LONGi’s durable, crack-free smart-welded modules and professional EPC execution with LONGi’s partner SEV ensured resilience, stability, and long-term performance even under extreme weather.

Cambodia: Aeon scales solar with three Phnom Penh malls powered by LONGi

Following the success of its Vietnam solar deployment, Aeon quickly expanded its model to Cambodia, where it implemented three additional rooftop photovoltaic systems across Phnom Penh malls using LONGi modules. At Aeon Mall Sen Sok City, an additional 2 MWp of solar capacity brought the total rooftop installation to 3.23 MWp, making it the largest mall-based solar system in Cambodia Aeon Mall Phnom Penh and Aeon Mall Meanchey also joined the solar roll-out, with Meanchey featuring approximately 1.9 MWp of rooftop panels covering around 8,848 m² of roof space. These installations underscore Aeon’s growing commitment to renewable energy as a central part of its green building strategy in the region.

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Retail and resilience as one: Aeon’s solar roadmap to 2040

Aeon’s journey shows that solar energy in retail is a foundation for competitiveness, resilience, and long-term growth. From flagship retrofits in Japan to high-yield projects in Vietnam and Cambodia, and large-scale rollouts in Malaysia and Indonesia, Aeon has proven that integrating renewable energy into its core business model delivers measurable value: lower operating costs, new revenue from carbon credits, stronger tenant retention, and climate resilience against extreme weather events. With over half of its electricity already sourced from renewables and community solar plants scaling rapidly across Japan, Aeon is on track to meet its goal of operating all directly managed malls on 100 percent renewable electricity by 2025. Looking ahead, the company’s Decarbonization Vision 2050 places solar at the center of a broader strategy to achieve net-zero emissions by 2040. For Aeon, sustainability has become profit engineering and solar rooftops are no longer empty spaces but strategic assets driving the next era of retail.

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