General Motors claims it will fulfill its pledge to power all of its U.S. operations with renewable energy by 2025 – 25 years sooner than the date it projected when it set that target in 2016. The automaker now reports it has secured all of the renewable energy it will need, having negotiating sourcing agreements from 16 renewable-energy plants in 10 states.
Last year, GM said it would hit the 100% renewable-energy target in 2030.
The automaker has not indicated how its energy costs will be affected by the reliance on renewable energy sources, though it stated that its portfolio of supply agreements has produced over $75 million of positive cash flows since 2017.
By meeting its goal sooner than planned, GM stated it will avoid producing an estimated 1 million metric tons of carbon emissions that would have been produced during the 2025-2030 period.
“We believe it is critical — to ourselves, to our customers, and to the future of the planet — to step up our efforts and reach ambitious targets that move us closer to a more sustainable world,” stated GM’s chief sustainability officer, Kristen Siemen. “Securing the renewable energy we need to achieve our goal demonstrates tangible progress in reducing our emissions in all aspects of our business, ultimately moving us closer to our vision of a future with zero emissions.”
GM has said sourcing renewable energy through direct investment, green tariffs, and power-purchase agreements. It also has pledged to increasing energy efficiency at its locations.
Last year GM announced that it is collaborating with PJM Interconnection, a regional transmission organization, and TimberRock, a technology-enabled energy company, to track the real-time carbon emissions at GM’s plants.
"We believe it is critical — to ourselves, to our customers and to the future of the planet — to step up our efforts and reach ambitious targets that move us closer to a more sustainable world,” says Kristen Siemen, the company's chief sustainability officer. “Securing the renewable energy we need to achieve our goal demonstrates tangible progress in reducing our emissions in all aspects of our business, ultimately moving us closer to our vision of a future with zero emissions.”
