Commercial, Industrial, Solar, Sourcing Renewables, Wind  -  January 19, 2017

Report: Goldman Sachs, H&M ramp clean energy use

Among a growing list of RE100 composite companies, the group recently singled out Goldman Sachs, Elopak and H&M as making large strides toward their goal of powering their operations with 100% renewable energy. 

The global initiative RE100, which represents companies such as Bank of America, General Motors Co. and Mars Inc. that have committed to using 100% renewables, recently released its second annual report, including a list of new members, current member accomplishments and trendlines in corporate procurement of clean energy. Members making fastest progress toward 100%, according to report, include Goldman Sachs, which jumped from 14% renewable electricity in 2014 to 86% in 2015; Elopak, which went from 18% to 86% renewable during the same year; and H&M, which went from 27% to 78%.

Among other accomplishments, the report notes General Motors has reported savings of $5 million a year from using renewable energy. That figure likely to increase significantly as prospective projects come online and the supply of renewable energy increases, the group said in a news release announcing the report. 

In total, RE100's current 87 members are now creating demand for approximately 107 TWh of renewable energy each year, which shakes out to about the same amount of electricity used by the Netherlands, according to the release. 

Among other key report findings: 

• Around half of the electricity being consumed by members reporting electricity use in the U.S. is from renewables, accounting for the highest amount of renewable electricity being sourced in any country worldwide (6.8 TWh in 2015, with unbundled renewable energy attribute certificate purchases, or RECs, being the most popular approach that year);
• Almost all of electricity usage reported by members in Europe is from renewables (14.4 TWh in 2015, with an even split between unbundled renewable energy attribute certificate purchases and green tariffs as the most popular approaches that year);
• Of the 34 RE100 members reporting the use of self-generation on-site at their facilities, wind and solar PV were by far the most popular technologies.

"[I]ncreased affordability, together with supportive policy initiatives, means that there is now a clear business case for renewable power, which is helping to grow corporate demand for renewables in all regions of the world," RE100 said in the report.

RE100 is led by The Climate Group in partnership with CDP.

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