Bloomberg joins RE100 with 100% renewable energy target

Global financial software, data and media company Bloomberg has become the latest organisation to join The Climate Group's RE100 campaign by setting an ambitious new goal to be 100% powered by renewable electricity by 2025.


Launched by The Climate Group and CDP in 2014, the initiative – which has already signed up a number of high-profile firms such as M&S, BT and Ikea – works to assist major companies source 100% renewable power.

Bloomberg’s commitment furthers the company’s efforts to prove that sustainable business practices are good for the environment and good for business.

Bloomberg’s global head of sustainable business and finance Curtis Ravenel said: “Sourcing renewable electricity enables us to diversify our energy supply, reduce costs, provide a hedge against rising traditional energy costs and helps contribute to cleaner, healthier communities.

“RE100 convinced us that they had gathered a strong coalition of committed companies, dedicated to real outcomes. That’s exciting to us. Collaborating with other companies who are demonstrating that distributed clean energy makes business sense will allow all of us to have a greater impact in bringing other companies along.”

The Climate Group’s executive director Amy Davidsen added: “Bloomberg is the first US company to join RE100 post Paris and we are delighted to see their continued progress. The company recognises that renewable power will help to lower costs, reduce risk and contribute to a cleaner, healthier future – a win for both business and the environment.

“There’s a huge opportunity for businesses to deliver emissions cuts via renewables and Bloomberg’s leadership is exactly what we need to inspire many more companies to make the switch to renewables, too.”

Bloomberg’s impact

Bloomberg’s commitment to 100% renewable power is an ambitious goal for the company, having sourced only 1% of its electricity from renewable energy last year. In 2013, the company set a target to use 35% renewable electricity by 2020 and it claims to be making good progress; expecting to source 21% from renewables by the end of 2017.

As an example of the company’s sustainability drive, the company recently undertook the Bloomberg-JFK Airport Solar Project – the first solar project of its kind in New York City to use remote net metering, a system that enables a site with poor solar capacity to benefit from solar PV systems installed at an alternative site.

This move to join RE100 comes ahead of the release of the 2015 Bloomberg Impact report later this month, which will reveal the full extent of the group’s efforts around renewables and sustainability.

RE100 upsurge

Bloomberg’s announcement is the latest in a line of major companies signing up for the RE100 campaign. Earlier this month, India’s largest car manufacturer Tata Motors announced it would be joining the RE100 initiative in a move that will see the firm use 100% renewable energy across its entire operations.

Carmaker BMW and soft drinks producer Coca Cola Enterprises were among another recent wave of companies that announced RE100 pledges during the COP21 climate talks in Paris.

At the start of the year, The Climate Group and CDP released a report which showed that the 53 companies to have signed up to the RE100 pledge are on average half way on course to achieving their goals.

George Ogleby

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