Faro Old Town

The city of Faro has a long history, with the Romans establishing an important port there over 2000 years ago. Within the ancient walls built by the Romans are cobbled pedestrian streets and many historic buildings in what is now known as Cidade Velha, the Old Town. Many tourists flock to the city every year to explore these charming streets and soak up the atmosphere.
 

Urban lighting for a safe and pleasant nighttime experience

The local authorities are all too aware of the importance of lighting at night to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for residents and visitors. The Old Town has been lit by the CASCAIS lantern, a unique six-sided heritage lantern designed by Schréder many years ago to enhance the history of the area at night.
 

Urban lighting to align with city goals

In 2023, Faro City Council decided to replace the lanterns, which were fitted with traditional discharge lamps and were inefficient, to align with the city’s environmental, energy and economic objectives. They wanted to: 

• reduce energy and maintenance costs;
• lower their environmental footprint;
• preserve the historical character of the lanterns.
   

Use less energy and preserve unique heritage lantern design  

Our Schréder STUDIO team took up the challenge of upgrading the CASCAIS lanterns to LED technology while preserving their unique design, which is a part of the city’s identity.

The modern LED versions consume only 39W, compared to the old 120W versions, resulting in a significant 67% reduction in energy costs.

With 170 lanterns lighting the cobbled streets, the annual energy consumption has been reduced from 81,906kWh to just 26,686kWh, resulting in an annual saving of 55,220kWh.
 

Heritage LED lanterns with a lower carbon footprint

The annual energy savings also equates to a reduction of 24.3 tonnes of CO₂ emissions per year, making a significant contribution to the city's environmental sustainability goals.

Thanks to the long life of the LEDs and the robust design of the lanterns, maintenance operations will also be significantly reduced, minimising the need to send out teams for interventions and disrupting city life.

We were delighted to help the city of Faro to preserve its character while achieving its environmental, energy and economic goals.