Conshohocken, PA. Today, President Obama announced more than 300 private and public sector commitments to create jobs and cut carbon pollution by advancing solar deployment and energy efficiency. IKEA US was listed with this commitment:
IKEA commits to use renewable energy generation at their new U.S. IKEA store locations, when feasible, with a focus on evaluating the viability of using solar and geothermal generation. IKEA is also announcing that their Miami, Florida store, which will open in summer 2014, will be their 40th US location with solar PV.
IKEA is committed to renewable energy and to running its business in a way that minimizes carbon emissions, not only because of the environmental impact but also for good business practices. IKEA invests in its own renewable energy sources so that it can control exposure to fluctuating electricity costs and to also continue to provide great value to its customers.
IKEA US is currently the 2nd largest private commercial solar US owner/user and is in the midst of investing $150 million in Photovoltaic systems. On April 10, 2014, IKEA US announced that it is making its first wind farm investment in the United States with the purchase of Hoopeston Wind in Hoopeston, Illinois. The 98 megawatt wind farm is the largest single IKEA Group renewable energy investment globally to date and will make a significant contribution to the company’s goal to generate as much renewable energy as the total energy it consumes by 2020. The project is currently being constructed by Apex Clean Energy and is expected to be fully operational by the first half of 2015. Hoopeston Wind is expected to generate up to 380 GWh of renewable energy each year.
During FY13, IKEA installed solar panels atop 8 more US locations. Today these solar installations completed are 90% of IKEA locations across 20 states, resulting in 165,000 solar panels providing 38 MW installed capacity. For FY14, IKEA US will expand the solar installations atop 3 locations as well as install an array atop its future Miami-Dade store set to open in Summer 2014. In addition, IKEA integrated a geothermal component into the heating and cooling system of the IKEA store in Centennial, CO, with another geothermal project underway as part of a new Kansas City-area store slated to open in Fall 2014.
The IKEA Group has also installed 550,000 solar panels on IKEA buildings in nine countries. In 2013, the IKEA Group produced 1,425 GWh of energy from renewable sources, including wind and solar, equivalent to 37% of the company’s total energy needs. As part of its People & Planet Positive sustainability strategy, the company has allocated $2 billion to invest in wind and solar until 2015 to get closer to its goal of producing 100% as much renewable energy as the total energy it consumes by 2020. The IKEA Group is also leading in making its operations more energy efficient, and since 2010 has saved nearly $55 million through energy efficiency efforts in IKEA stores and warehouses.
The commitments in this statement from President Obama administration represent more than 850 megawatts of solar deployed – enough to power nearly 130,000 homes – as well as energy efficiency investments that will lower bills for more than 1 billion square feet of buildings. Additionally, the President announced new executive actions that will lead to $2 billion in energy efficiency investments in Federal buildings; smarter appliances that will cut carbon pollution by more than 380 million metric tons – equivalent to taking 80 million cars off the road for one year – and will save businesses nearly $26 billion on their energy bills; and training programs at community colleges across the country that will assist 50,000 workers to enter the solar industry by 2020.
About IKEA
The IKEA vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people. Our business idea supports this vision by offering a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them. There are currently 305 IKEA Group stores in 26 countries. There are 38 IKEA stores in the US. In FY 13, the IKEA Group had 135,000 co-workers, 684 million visitors to the stores and 1.3 billion visitors to IKEA.com. IKEA incorporates sustainability into day-to-day business and supports initiatives that benefit children and the environment.
This news is courtesy of www.ikea.com
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