A groundbreaking study undertaken for the first time and jointly released today by the nation’s retail and technology industries concludes that states that are investing in clean domestic energy production are also the most likely to attract businesses, creating thousands of jobs in their communities.
The new analysis, released today by the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) and the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) ranks all 50 U.S. states for the first time, based on the ease with which America’s most recognizable brands can procure domestic renewable energy such as solar and wind for their operations.
The Corporate Clean Energy Procurement Index: State Leadership & Rankings, written by Clean Edge on behalf of RILA and ITI, notes that demand for clean energy among retailers and technology companies is expected to increase to 60 GW by 2025, the equivalent of powering over 43 million homes. Retail and tech companies such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Target and Wal-Mart are among nearly half of the Fortune 500 companies seeking to locate operations in states with clean energy production due to fossil fuel price volatility and pollution concerns. The index is intended to inform business leaders and guide state policymakers hoping to attract new job-creating businesses and foster economic growth.
“Retailers are at the forefront of the growing trend to procure clean energy to power their operations; this index will help them focus on the states that are conducive to doing business. We urge state governments to look hard at steps they can take to promote customer choice for renewable energy so that they can open the doors to new investments,” said Adam Siegel, senior vice president, research, innovation & sustainability at RILA.
“The technology industry is increasingly transitioning to clean energy to meet customer demands, consumer expectations and our own strong sustainability commitments. Clean and renewable energy sources are good for the environment, and they provide energy reliability and price stability benefits that are good for business. States interested in growing their tech sector should embrace this trend,” said Rick Goss, senior vice president for environment and sustainability for ITI.
“As adoption of the cloud accelerates, so does the energy consumption of the datacenters that power the cloud. Meeting these energy needs with renewable energy is good for our business, the economy and the environment,” said Dan’l Lewin, corporate vice president of technology and civic engagement at Microsoft. “Our clean energy investments provide economic and sustainability benefits to the communities where we operate, while enhancing the reliability of the local grid. We hope this report will create opportunities to expand this work.”
“Walmart is proud to be recognized as a leader in renewable energy procurement, and we are encouraged that a number of states have made significant efforts to support the practice,” said Mark Vanderhelm, vice president–energy, Walmart. “Much work remains to be done, and we look to these efforts to determine the best practices that will drive the broader creation of cost-effective, customer-focused and operationally sustainable renewable energy procurement programs.”
In addition to ranking all 50 states, the report identifies barriers that inhibit states from growing their economies through domestic renewable energy. They include over-regulation and high artificial taxes that shut state power markets off from competition and regional cooperation in order to protect legacy fossil fuel electricity production. It even includes examples of multiple states benefiting when they lower barriers, including a deal between an Illinois-based Ikea wind farm and a Virginia clean energy developer.
The results show a wide disparity in clean energy policy at the state level, making some states far more attractive to businesses that use large amounts of electricity, such as retailers and technology companies.
Graphic from RILA & ITI’s report
The report recommends that state policymakers focus on deregulating their power markets to enable customer choice of renewable energy and competition from renewable energy producers. It urges states to lower artificial taxes that target their domestic clean energy producers. The report also recommends allowing businesses to have onsite production such as solar panels on their roofs or cutting-edge battery energy storage technologies to help ease power grid demands during peak times. To back up its findings, the report includes specific case studies as examples where states succeeded and examples where barriers remain.
The report authors will host a public webinar on Jan. 17 at 2:00 p.m. ET to discuss the report findings and answer questions. The webinar will feature short presentations on key lessons and best practices for renewable energy deployment.
News item from the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) and the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI)