Holcim US, the green building materials leader, has entered into its first virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) linked to renewable energy generation. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) VPPA means that at least 38% of our total power consumption at all of our production facilities in Texas is now from wind generation. The agreement complements our ongoing investment in on-site renewable energy generation, participation in community solar farms and significant gains from electrical efficiency investments.
"Holcim US is driving forward momentum to meet our Green Growth Strategy goals by incorporating new technologies and processes at every level," said Atl Martinez, Vice President, Procurement, Holcim North America. "We're increasing the energy efficiency of our operations to use less energy while accomplishing more. From our largest cement plants to our aggregate sites, terminal sites and offices, we're looking at our full environmental impact and optimizing in every area we can."
Holcim US recently finalized an ERCOT Agreement, a VPPA from which 92,000 Renewable Energy Credits will be generated annually to go towards our de-carbonization goals. The renewable energy is generated from a large wind farm in Coke County, Texas. The generation from this contract is equivalent to reducing 143,739,000lbs of CO2 annually.
Through wind and solar contracts on the horizon, Holcim US is set to avoid an estimated 5,000,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions through the terms of the contracts. The equivalent to 12.5 billion miles driven by gasoline powered cars or 5.5 billion pounds of coal burned.
Additionally, Holcim US generates on-site renewable energy in Paulding, Ohio with three wind turbines generating up to 4.5 MW of power and in Hagerstown, Maryland with a 10 MW solar array, which reduces CO2 emissions by 28,000,000lbs of C02 annually. In addition, a total of 68 MW of solar arrays are under contract in Colorado, Michigan and Arkansas, along with a 40 MW battery storage system in Colorado.
The renewable energy effort is only part of Holcim's work toward the transition to net zero. From offering low-carbon cements and concretes to incorporating electrification of company vehicles and trucks to innovative carbon capture research, the company continues to put sustainability first.
