Amazon increases renewable energy procurement by 40%

Online retail giant Amazon has revealed that it increased its renewable energy procurement by 40% over the last year, scaling its renewable energy project portfolio by more than 2GW of capacity.


Amazon increases renewable energy procurement by 40%

In total

Amazon has reiterated its position as the largest corporate buyer of renewable energy in the world. In a company update, it was revealed that renewable energy procurement had increased by 40% over a 12-month period.

Amazon now has 274 clean energy projects globally—enough to power more than three million US homes. The company has also announced 18 new utility-scale wind and solar energy projects in the US, Finland, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK, representing 2GW of clean energy capacity.

Combined with projects announced earlier in the year, Amazon will add 5.6GW of renewable energy capacity in 2021. The company is aiming to be powered by 100% renewable energy globally by 2025, which is five years ahead of an original target set for 2030.

In total, Amazon has announced 274 global renewable energy projects, including 105 utility-scale wind and solar projects, and 169 solar rooftops on facilities and stores worldwide.

Amazon is aiming to become a net-zero company globally by 2040, under its Climate Pledge. It is working with Global Optimism – the brainchild of Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac – to encourage other corporates to make the same commitments. Other supporters include the likes of HenkelMicrosoft, Coca-Cola European Partners, UnileverBest Buy and Siemens.

“Amazon is wasting no time demonstrating that the company is fully committed to a clean energy future,” Gregory Wetstone, chief executive of the American Council on Renewable Energy said.

Dogger Bank

In related news, the companies behind the Dogger Bank wind farm, SSE Renewables and Equinor, have reached financial close on the third phase of the project. Total investment in the Dogger Bank Wind Farm will reach £9bn, including £3bn of phase C funding.

Dogger Bank is on course to be the world’s largest offshore wind farm when complete in March 2026. It will have a capacity of 1,200MW and will generate around 6TWh. In total, Dogger Bank will produce enough clean, renewable electricity to supply 5% of the UK’s demand, equivalent to powering six million UK homes.

SSE’s chief executive Alistair Phillips-Davies said: “It is a fantastic achievement to be reaching financial close on the third phase of the world’s largest offshore wind project, just weeks after COP26 concluded in Glasgow and today marks an important early milestone in the delivery of our own Net Zero Acceleration Programme.

“Our plans will enable delivery of over 25% of UK’s 2030 40GW offshore wind target, whilst also expanding overseas, delivering over 20% of upcoming UK electricity networks investment and deploying the critical flexibility technologies to provide security of supply.”

Late last year, financial close was confirmed on two phases of Dogger Bank, with capital expenditure reaching around £6bn, which is the largest offshore wind project financing globally.

SSE Renewables and Equinor confirmed that the first two phases of the project will each require a total capital expenditure of around £3bn, including offshore transmission capex of around £800m per phase.

With a capacity of 3.6GW, Dogger Bank will be the largest offshore windfarm in the world when operational. It consists of three 1.2GW phases and construction began on the Dogger Bank Wind Farm in January last year.

Dogger Bank has secured 15-year contracts with the Low Carbon Contracts Company (LCCC) through the UK Government’s Contract for Difference (CfD) auction. This was achieved in September 2019, when the auction delivered record low-strike prices. As such, Dogger Bank A has a strike price of £39.65/MWh, while phases B and C have secured a strike rate of £41.61/MWh.

In September, the wind farm confirmed that it will have its new operations and maintenance (O&M) base constructed and operated under recognised standards for net-zero buildings.

Equinor’s Dogger Bank Wind Farm will have its O&M based constructed in line with the UK Green Building Council’s (UKGBC) Net Zero Carbon Buildings Framework.

The facility, to be located at the Port of Tyne, will be fitted with solar panels to enable onsite renewable generation, electric vehicle (EV) charging points for staff and will be built using low-carbon materials that meet UKGBC energy efficiency classifications.

Matt Mace

Comments (1)

  1. Kim Warren says:

    Buying renewable power does nothing at all to cut emissions – it just pushes *other* power users to be supplied by gas-fired power. Same applies to domestic renewable tariffs.

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