A coalition of major companies have taken a pledge to source 100% of their power from renewable energy sources.
RE100, a campaign led by The Climate Group in partnership with CDP, has secured commitments from Goldman Sachs, Johnson & Johnson, NIKE, Inc., Procter & Gamble, Salesforce, Starbucks, Steelcase, Voya Financial, and Walmart.
“As a leading global financial institution, we have had a long standing commitment to finance and invest in clean energy around the world to help the transition to a low carbon economy,” said Kyung-Ah Park, Head of Environmental Markets at Goldman Sachs.
” We are also committed to reducing our own carbon footprint, and will target the use of 100 percent renewable power to meet our global electricity needs by 2020.”
Like Goldman Sachs, some of the other companies to recently make 100% renewable energy commitments have set target dates – Johnson & Johnson by 2050, Nike by 2025 and Voya International by the end of this year.
Dozens of significant corporations have now joined RE100, including IKEA Group, Philips, Unilever and Mars, Incorporated.
Switching to renewables isn’t just a PR stunt. While such commitments certainly resonate well with customers and potential customers; going renewable has proven to be a wise business move generally.
“Research shows that the most ambitious companies have seen a 27 percent return on their low carbon investments – no wonder new names keep joining RE100,” said Mark Kenber, CEO of The Climate Group.
“Lowering risk, protecting against price rises, saving millions and boosting brand is what shaping a low carbon economy is all about.”
The collective voice of these companies’ commitments to 100% renewables not only sends a strong message to other businesses, but also to policy makers.
In Australia, the use of solar on commercial premises is gaining popularity; particularly since the advent of solar PPA’s and leases that enable companies to have solar installed often without needing to outlay any capital. These solutions not only provide savings on current electricity rares and hedge against future electricity price risk, they also remove the burden of ownership of a system.
Companies utilising solar power in Australia include Bupa Aged Care, Bidvest Food Services and Nepean Motor Group.
