RE100 Increases Commitments In Advance Of Government-Led Support
Six new companies have joined global renewable energy campaign RE100, and are making commitments to 100% renewable power.
The “ambitious global campaign led by The Climate Group in partnership with CDP, to engage, support and showcase influential businesses committed to 100% renewable electricity” announced its six newest commitments on the sidelines of the Seventh Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM7) currently being held in San Francisco, where the new ‘Corporate Sourcing of Renewables’ campaign – led by the Danish and German governments – was also launched, “encouraging business action in CEM member countries and driving the world’s biggest, most influential companies making 100% renewable power commitments to join RE100.”
“The demand push from corporates is as important as supportive government policy – bold action by businesses, cities and governments sends a strong market signal and means we can hold global warming below two degrees far more quickly,” said Mark Kenber, CEO of The Climate Group. “The Clean Energy Ministerial is shining the spotlight on RE100 as a model of best practice in galvanizing the switch to renewable energy, and the wave of influential companies joining RE100 today shows the business case for 100% renewables is as strong as ever.”
“In many cases business wants to go further and faster. Governments can play a key role by implementing supportive policies, particularly in emerging economies – crucial for unlocking the growth of the renewable energy market globally.”
In advance of an increased drive in commitments, six new companies joined RE100 with individual commitments to 100% renewable power across their global operations. The six companies include global interconnection and data center provider Equinix, Swedish food processing and packaging giant Tetra Pak, Canadian financial leader TD Bank Group, leading manufacturer of modular carpet Interface, Inc., global advertising, media and marketing group Dentsu Aegis Network, and global provider of enterprise cloud applications Workday, Inc..
“Signing up to RE100 reflects our on-going commitment to minimizing our climate impact and increasing our use of renewable resources,” said Charles Brand, EVP Product Management and Commercial Operations, Tetra Pak. “We have set an ambitious target to ensure carbon emissions across our value chain are capped at 2010 levels through to 2020, and we are making excellent progress. In 2015 emissions were down 15% from the 2010 baseline, despite a 16% increase in production.”
“For the past twenty years, Interface has been on a mission to eliminate our negative environmental footprint,” added Erin Meezan, Vice President of Sustainability for Interface, Inc. “As we approach our goal year of 2020, it is gratifying to join the companies engaged in RE100 in committing to aggressive renewable energy goals.”
This brings the number of companies committed to RE100 up to 65. It’s a small number in comparison to the 1,000 that RE100 has previously estimated could decarbonize almost a tenth of all electricity used worldwide and cut 1,000 Mt of CO2 every year, but it’s a start — and a start that could quickly grow if government pushes actually succeed in increasing the number of companies committed to RE100.
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