IBM announced new goals for the use of renewable energy and for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Its goals include procuring electricity from renewable sources for 20% of IBM’s annual electricity consumption by 2020.
To achieve this goal the company plans to contract over 800,000 megawatt-hours (MWH) per year of renewable electricity — an amount that can power a city of 100,000 people. It intends to match its purchased renewable electricity directly to its operations as opposed to purchasing renewable energy certifi cates as offsets, making a clear connection between purchases and consumption.
IBM’s next goal is to reduce CO2 emissions associated with IBM’s energy consumption by 35% by year-end 2020 against base year 2005 adjusted for acquisitions and divestitures. This represents an additional 20% reduction from year-end 2012 to year-end 2020 over the reductions achieved from 2005 to 2012.
From 1990 to 2005, IBM said it avoided three million metric tons of CO2 emissions — an amount equal to 40% of its 1990 emissions — through a program of conservation actions. “Incremental progress becomes
harder at this stage of maturity, but IBM nevertheless sustains its leadership, achieves results, and practices transparency.” Its press note stated.
Since 1990, when IBM fi rst began publicly reporting on its energy conservation activities, the note said
IBM’s conservation actions have saved more than 6.4 billion kWh of electricity consumption, avoided 4 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, and saved the company more than a $513 million.
IBM’s environmental protection and energy conservation initiative date back more than 40 years to when CEO Thomas J. Watson Jr. established IBM’s fi rst environmental policy, which called upon the company to be an environmental leader across all of its business activities.
