Energy Efficiency | Page 229

BB&T Corporation announced it will invest more than $40 million in 1,200 of its facilities with the goal of decreasing energy and water consumption. The company also set new corporate sustainability targets of reducing energy consumption by 25% and water consumption by 10% over the next five years.

Tiffin University in Ohio announced construction will begin on its first rooftop solar project. Located at the University’s Heminger Center, the solar array will feature 705 panels constructed on 14,000 square feet of rooftop space.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) announced on July 18 the completion of the largest solar system installed in New York City, located in Staten Island. The 3.1-megawatt solar array will offset a large portion of the electricity used by Fordham University and Fordham Preparatory School in the Bronx.

No longer reserved for the Fortune 500, financial instruments like Virtual Power Purchase Agreements (VPPAs) are gaining popularity among smaller companies and public-sector entities looking to cost-effectively meet clean energy goals. Google, Apple, Amazon, and Walmart have paved the way for other, more risk averse but environmentally-minded entities to power their operations with renewable energy.

Facebook has announced it will finance construction of six large solar projects that will generate 437 megawatts of power for its Prineville, Oregon campus, home of three existing and two more planned data centers.

Lockheed Martin implemented more than 70 energy efficiency and carbon reduction projects in 2017 as the company heads towards a series of 2020 energy management goals. Progress was detailed in their recently released 2017 Sustainability Report

The 690-megawatt Gemini Solar Project, expected to be one of the largest solar projects in Nevada’s history, has been proposed by Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners. The project will be located on almost 44,000-acres of Bureau of Land Management supervised property approximately 25 miles northeast of downtown Las Vegas, Nevada.

Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama has completed the addition of a 120-kW rooftop solar array, featuring more than 370 solar panels on one of the center’s newer buildings.

With the release of its company’s 2018 Sustainability Report, The Kroger Co. shared progress on a variety of sustainability goals, including two climate-related goals for Kroger Retail.