Friday, March 29, 2024
Outlook.com
Outlook India
Outlook Business

Amazon Sets a Record for Most Renewable Energy Purchased by a Single Company

The company’s renewable energy portfolio now totals more than 20 gigawatts, and will generate enough clean energy to power 5.3 million homes in the US

Amazon Sets a Record for Most Renewable Energy Purchased by a Single Company

Outlook Start-Up Desk

POSTED ON February 02, 2023 11:32 AM

Amazon announced that in 2022 it grew its renewable energy capacity by 8.3 gigawatts (GW) through 133 new projects in 11 countries. This brings Amazon’s total portfolio to more than 20 GW which could generate the amount of energy to power 5.3 million US homes across 401 renewable energy projects in 22 countries. 

The company’s renewable energy purchases continue to add new wind and solar projects on the grids that power Amazon’s operations, including Amazon Web Services (AWS) data centers, Amazon fulfillment centers and physical stores around the world.

With these continued investments, Amazon has set a new corporate record for the most renewable energy announced by a single company in one year. The company remains the largest corporate buyer of renewable energy, a position it’s held since 2020, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. 

Amazon’s continued investment in renewable energy helps to accelerate growth in new regions through innovative deal structures, technologies and cloud solutions. 

These purchases also bring Amazon closer to powering its operations with 100 per cent renewable energy by 2025, five years ahead of its original 2030 target. In 2022, the company announced new projects in Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Poland, Singapore, Spain and the US, and broke ground in Brazil, India and Indonesia. 

With 25 new renewable energy projects secured to close out the year, the company now has 401 projects globally, including 164 wind farms and solar farms and 237 rooftop solar projects on Amazon facilities. Once operational, Amazon’s global renewable energy projects are expected to generate 56,881 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of clean energy each year.

“As we continue to launch new renewable energy projects around the world, we’re pleased to be on track to power our operations with 100% renewable energy, five years ahead of our original target. With 133 projects in 11 countries announced in 2022, Amazon had another record year,” said Adam Selipsky, chief executive officer (CEO) of AWS. 

“These projects highlight the diversity of our renewable energy sources and showcase our ability to bring new technologies to new markets and further reduce the impacts of climate change,” he added. 

In addition to the 108 clean energy projects the company announced in 2022, Amazon today is announcing 25 additional 2022 clean energy projects. These include:

  • Eleven new projects in Europe including Finland, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom, totaling 372 megawatts (MW) of capacity. Tapping into one of the world’s best renewable energy resources, Amazon continued to add to its portfolio of offshore wind projects, investing in two new offshore wind projects in Europe totaling 280 MW of capacity. 
  • Four new projects in North America, totaling 918 MW of energy in Arizona, California, and Texas. A new solar project paired with energy storage in California allows Amazon to store clean energy produced by its solar projects and deploy it when solar energy is not available, such as in the evening hours, or during periods of high demand. Also in California, Amazon added its first on-site solar project at the Amazon Air Hub, where employees pack and handle freight and conduct planeside operations. 
  • Ten new renewable energy projects in India, Indonesia, and Japan. In India, a third 200 MW wind-solar hybrid project was added to Amazon’s first two wind-solar hybrid projects. Renewable hybrid energy systems can play a key role in helping India accelerate the decarbonization of power generation, lowering the cost of electricity in the medium term. These hybrid energy systems also maximise clean energy use on the grid by combining two technologies with different generation profiles, reducing variability in renewable generation, and improving grid stability. In Indonesia, Amazon invested in its first renewable energy projects, securing a first-of-its-kind agreement for corporations to access additional, utility-scale solar projects. In Japan, Amazon added three on-site solar projects and a new 38 MW utility-scale solar project. 

Rapidly scaling renewable energy is one of the most effective strategies to fight climate change. To ensure organizations’ renewable energy purchases have the greatest impact on emissions reductions, Amazon recently led the creation of the new Emissions First coalition. This coalition is leading advocacy efforts to modernize the world’s leading carbon-accounting standard, helping to reduce carbon from global electricity grids as quickly and cost-effectively as possible.

  • Related Articles

    Speaking about the education sector, she said, "The budget proposals like teachers training and National Digital Library align with the NEP schools and by investing in cutting-edge digital...

    Budget Will Lead India Towards Self-Reliance: Byju's Co-Founder

    The government on Wednesday proposed to extend the period of incorporation of eligible start-ups by one more year till March 31, 2024, for providing tax incentives to encourage budding entrepreneurs

    Budget 2023 To Give Lot Of Support To India's Start-Up Ecosystem: Goyal

    Prior to this acquisition, ReadyAssist raised $5 million in a pre-Series A funding round in November 2022

    ReadyAssist Acquires SpeedForce For $10 Million