Demanding Better: How Tech Companies Can Drive the Clean Energy Transition
Demanding Better: How Tech Companies Can Drive the Clean Energy Transition
Large tech corporations and other web-based companies must take the lead and ensure that the data centers they build are powered by renewable energy, not fossil fuels.
Updates
New Blog Post: Why You - And the Planet -- Are Paying For the AI Gold Rush
Why You - and the Planet - Are Paying for the AI Gold Rush
The current and near-term results of the AI buildout are ironic, because the hyperscalers have previously articulated admirable commitments to greening the grid and, until very recently, could be considered potential allies in promoting the growth of wind, solar, and batteries. But recent developments suggest these companies are prepared to jettison their sustainability goals in hopes of striking AI gold.
Sierra Club Unveils Strategies for Clean Energy Amid Rising Electricity Demand
Demanding Better
How growing demand for electricity can drive a cleaner grid
Our new report, Demanding Better, is a useful guide for how tech companies can leverage their influence to decrease climate pollution as demand for electricity increases due to their products.
Sierra Club Unveils Strategies for Clean Energy Amid Rising Electricity Demand
Demanding Better
How growing demand for electricity can drive a cleaner grid
Our new report, Demanding Better, is a useful guide for how tech companies can leverage their influence to decrease climate pollution as demand for electricity increases due to their products.
How new energy demand is stalling our climate goals
Utilities serving large new load corporate customers are increasingly turning to new gas, and even keeping old coal plants online. The discrepancy between the pledges of large customers and the actions of their host utilities are sharp. Big customers often claim that they’re facilitating renewable energy, but many either just buy unbundled renewable credits, or contract with inexpensive wind and solar in a different part of the country. Increasingly, large customers site data centers and manufacturing facilities where they can find interconnection without regard to their host utilities emissions, or intention to reduce emissions. And so utilities with zombie coal plants and gas plants in the queue are getting new customers, and our climate goals are in peril.
Takeaways from our new report
We ask that new large load customers show leadership to support the system services that integrate and balance renewable energy, like energy storage, transmission upgrades, and demand-management.
We lay out three pathways to accomplish these goals:
- Large energy customers should look to procure around-the-clock clean energy (also called “24/7 carbon-free energy”) through direct or sleeved power purchase agreements, or work with their utilities to build comprehensive green energy tariffs that allow customers to meet their energy and capacity needs with zero emissions resources;
- Large energy customers should engage in utility regulatory proceedings to ensure that their host utilities conduct good planning, procure clean energy, and are held accountable for outcomes that serve the interests of both large and small customers;
- Large customers can advocate for broad, binding clean energy standards that meet rigorous emissions targets, align the interests of all electricity customers, and ensure that there is no leakage to other customer classes or geographies.