Friday 14 September 2012

Top US brands revealed as big solar users

Top US brands revealed as big solar users

Top American brands including General Motors and supermarket chain Walmart have been revealed as some of the biggest firms using solar power in the States.

A list of the top 20 commercial users of solar panels revealed firms such as iconic department store chain Macy’s and package delivery experts FedEx have extensive solar panels on their sites.

According to US trade body the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the Top 20’s installations generate roughly $47.3 million (£30m) worth of electricity each year.

Altogether, US commercial solar installations have reduced business’ utility bills by hundreds of millions of dollars annually, said the SEIA.

SEIA President and CEO Rhone Resch said: “These companies know that solar energy allows them to reliably manage their long-term energy costs and in turn also helps to keep their customer prices low. Solar helps these top American companies focus on their core business by reducing overhead costs.”

Kim Saylors-Laster, vice president for energy at Walmart said: “We have plans to continue our investment in solar energy, expanding the number of locations powered by the sun, and we hope to use our scale to drive down prices for all renewable technologies.”

“Being listed among environmental leaders like Walmart and IKEA reinforces our progress in reducing our energy use,” added Mike Robinson, vice president of Sustainability and Global Regulatory Affairs for GM, which has a clutch of solar arrays at sites such as its Baltimore operations (pictured).

More than 1.2 million solar PV panels were used for the Top 20 corporate solar users’ installations. Combined, these arrays would cover more than 544 acres of rooftops.

Written by

Bruna Pinhoni

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