Brewer Anheuser-Busch Signs Major Wind PPA With Enel Green Power
Missouri-based Anheuser-Busch, brewer of drinks such as Budweiser and Stella Artois, can now boast that 20 billion 12-ounce servings of beer each year will be made with renewable energy produced at Enel Green Power’s 298 megawatt Thunder Ranch wind farm.
Anheuser-Busch is one of America’s leading breweries, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the world’s largest brewer, Anheuser-Busch InBev. Announced on Wednesday, Anheuser-Busch revealed that it had signed a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Enel Green Power (EGP), the Renewable Energies division of Italian Enel Group, for 152.5 megawatts (MW) worth of wind energy produced at the 298 MW Thunder Ranch wind farm located approximately near Billings, Oklahoma.
Subsequently, Anheuser-Busch has increased its total purchased electricity from renewable energy from 2% up to 50% with this PPA, significantly reducing the companies’ overall emissions from its American operations. The agreement marks the first step on the road to Anheuser-Busch InBev’s commitment to achieving 100% purchased electricity from renewable energy by 2025. When Thunder Ranch reaches completion later this year, it will be Anheuser-Busch InBev’s first contracted utility-scale project to start operations in the world.
All in all, Anheuser-Busch will receive approximately 610 gigawatt-hours of renewable energy each year — enough to produce 20 billion 12-ounce servings of beer each year, or the equivalent of more than 7 billion liters.
“As we strive to bring people together to build a better world, we at Anheuser-Busch are dedicated to reducing our carbon emissions,” said João Castro Neves, president and CEO of Anheuser-Busch. “Helping to grow the renewable energy market is not only good for the environment, it is a strategic business move as we strive for long-term sustainability. Now more than ever, we are excited to lead our company’s global effort toward a renewable future and, partnering with Enel, set an industry example of how major companies can help to make a difference in climate change.”
“We are thrilled to partner with Anheuser-Busch, a company, which like the Enel Group, is taking great strides to help tackle some of the world’s greatest challenges,” added Antonio Cammisecra, CEO of Enel Green Power. “Power Purchase Agreements are an attractive model that provide not only an avenue for growth, but also revenue certainty through stable pricing. This agreement is another important milestone for our company in the U.S. and globally, once again underscoring Enel Green Power’s position as the partner of choice for corporate customers, as we help them achieve their sustainability targets by providing customized renewable energy solutions, leveraging our industry-leading cost model and technology expertise.”
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