Amazon Powers Ahead

Amazon has announced 26 new utility-scale wind and solar energy projects with a total power generation capacity of 3.4 gigawatts (GW), bringing the company's total investment in renewable energy in 2020 to 35 projects and more than 4 GW of capacity - the largest corporate investment in renewable energy in a single year. These new projects make Amazon the largest corporate renewable energy buyer ever.

Amazon has now invested in 6.5 GW of wind and solar projects that will enable the company to power its operations with more than 18 million megawatt hours (MWh) of renewable energy annually. That's enough to power 1.7 million US homes for a year. These projects will provide renewable energy for Amazon's corporate offices, fulfilment centres and Amazon Web Services (AWS) data centres that support millions of customers around the world. They will also help achieve the goal of zero carbon emissions across the company by 2040. Part of this commitment is to power the in-house infrastructure with 100% renewable energy. The company is now on track to reach this milestone by 2025, five years ahead of the original 2030 target.

Among them is Europe's largest power purchase agreement to date. Amazon has agreed with offshore wind farm developer Ørsted to purchase 250MW over ten years from the planned Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm (900MW) in the German North Sea.

Rasmus Errboe, Senior Vice President of Ørsted and responsible for CPPAs said: "This agreement shows that Ørsted is the partner when it comes to decarbonising the industry. We welcome that Amazon has set ambitious targets and is making investments in renewable energy projects. This CPPA will bring the realisation of the Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm one step closer again and provide secure and stable revenues, as the project will be built and operated without government subsidies. This is how we ensure that green energy can be delivered for Germany and its energy transition. Germany remains an attractive market for Ørsted with its recent decision to install 40GW of offshore wind capacity by 2040."

"We are proud to be working with Ørsted on Amazon's first offshore wind farm, CPPA, which will be Europe's largest with 250MW of renewable energy," said Nat Sahlstrom, Director Amazon Energy. "The Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm will support our goal of powering 100 per cent of our operations with renewable energy and being carbon neutral by 2040."

“Private sector investment is essential to scaling renewable energy at the pace necessary to drive global climate action,” said Miranda Ballentine, CEO of Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance (REBA). “The U.S.-based projects alone make Amazon’s announcement 270% larger than the largest corporate procurement announcement from a single off-taker to date, and showcase the company’s leadership and commitment to a clean and prosperous energy future.”