Commercial, GHG Emissions, Sourcing Renewables  -  July 6, 2020

IBM cut energy use 4.5%, CO2 emissions 11.1% in 2019

IBM announced that they decreased their energy consumption by 4.5% and CO2 emissions by 11.1% in 2019 and now source 47% of their electricity from renewable sources.

The electronics company has a long-term goal to conserve energy each year equivalent to 3% of their annual energy consumption through conservation projects and source 55% of their electricity from renewable sources by 2025, according to their newly released 2019 Corporate Responsibility Report. They also plan to reduce operational emissions by 40% between 2005 and 2025; as of 2019, IBM has reduced CO2 emissions by 39.7% since 2005.

In 2019, IBM implemented energy conservation projects that delivered annual savings equivalent to 3.2% of their total energy use, including 1,660 projects at 230 locations that avoided nearly 136,000 MWh of energy, 47,000 metric tons of CO2 and $14.4 million in expenses.

“We are also building technology platforms designed to make organizations and their operations more resilient, efficient and sustainable for people and the planet,” CEO Arvind Krishna said in the report’s opening letter. “We know that in order to be successful, technologies must be not only effective, but trustworthy. IBM’s long-standing commitment to good tech reflects our company’s most deeply held values as well as our pledge to put responsible stewardship in the digital age at the core of our business strategy.”

For their electricity supply, of which 1,790,000 MWh comes from renewable sources, IBM directly contracted 25% through their power utility and retail suppliers, which avoided 287,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions. The other 22% was part of the existing mix they received from the grid.

The company also implemented smart building technology to improve building efficiency and has implemented combined solar and battery projects to optimize clean energy use at locations worldwide.

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