Facebook leads record clean power purchases in 2018

Corporations are purchasing more clean energy than ever, with 2018 already exceeding the record-amount set last year.

7.2 gigawatts (GW) of clean power has so far been agreed between corporate companies, such as Facebook, and wind and solar developers.

The amount for the first seven months of 2018 surpasses the 5.4 GW signed across the whole of 2017, itself a 20 percent uplift on the previous year.

Analysts from Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) released the data, which show the United States and the Nordic countries responsible for 80 percent of all purchases across 28 markets.

Facebook has already inked 1.1GW of agreements this year, followed by AT&T on 820 megawatts (MW). Norway’s Norsk Hydro has signed 667 MW, including a 29-year onshore wind deal in Sweden, reportedly the longest such agreement in the world.

The growth in corporate sustainability plans has helped stoke the market for long-term clean power agreements. These plans often focus on reducing direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions within a corporation’s business. However, as analysts pointed out, the decline in cost for new renewable energy projects has also played a part.

“…activity would not approach current levels if there were no opportunity for long-term savings,” said a statement from Bloomberg; solar PV modules have reduced by 84 per cent since 2010. Wind turbines have come down by 32 percent over the same period.

Bloomberg anticipates this strong level of growth to continue, especially as the number of signatories to the RE100 campaign increases. The initiative commits leading corporates to source 100 percent of their electricity from renewable energy. The pledges represent an increase in demand for wind and solar farms to the tune of 100 GW by 2030.  

“As more multi-nationals establish renewables targets, we expect corporations to have an increasing impact on power market design around the world, opening up new avenues for companies to purchase clean energy.”