Energy Efficiency | Page 245

Apple announced on July 12 the creation of a new investment fund in China to increase the use of renewable energy within its supply chain. The company will join 10 initial suppliers to invest nearly $300 million over the next four years into the China Clean Energy Fund, which will invest in and develop clean energy projects totaling more than 1 gigawatt of renewable energy in China.

Facebook and Stanford University are among the first customers of a new venture created to lease electric buses to U.S. corporations, schools, and cities. The enterprise joins BYD Co., a Warren Buffet-backed manufacturer of electric vehicles in China

Walmart has become the first member of the Smart Energy Decisions’ Supply Chain Initiative. Developed as an extension of SED’s Renewable Energy Sourcing Initiative, this new program is designed to help early adopters of renewable energy engage with their supply chains while helping their suppliers by delivering renewable energy sourcing education, peer-to-peer networking, and connections to renewable energy suppliers.

Hess Corporation announced a reduction in flaring and GHG emission intensities by 38% and 23%, respectively versus a 2014 baseline. The reductions were featured in Hess’ 2017 Sustainability Report, released on July 10.

Baxter International Inc., the global medical products company, announced that in 2017, 30% of the company’s energy use from its operations came from renewable resources. The company also reduced its absolute greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 17 percent

Resilience is often referred to as succeeding despite hardship. In human terms, it is the ability to shake off injury, persevere in the face of adversity, and generally recover from setbacks. In an energy context, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

After achieving both first and second generation GHG reduction goals, of 15% and 20%, respectively, Comerica Inc. announced a new set of GHG reduction goals along with the release of their 2017 Corporate Responsibility Progress Report.

General Motors announced a 20% increase in production of the Chevrolet Bolt EV electric car due to higher-than-expected demand from customers. GM reported a 40% jump in global sales for the EV model in the first half of 2018 year-over-year, driven by sales in the U.S., Canada, and South Korea.

It's the weekend! Kick back and relax with these with these must-read stories from around the web:

Volkswagen announced plans to launch a carsharing program in 2019 using electric vehicles. The program will begin in Germany and expand to major cities in Europe, North America, and Asia in 2020 and will focus on core VW brand cars.