New Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) data concludes that Texas was responsible for more than 25 percent of all worldwide corporate renewable energy deals officially signed by the end of 2019.
The BNEF reported that Texas accounted for 5.5 gigawatts in the amount of corporate deals occurring across the globe. Texas’ climate is one of the few United States areas where major corporations can find large amounts of renewable and affordable resources. Eighty percent of Texas corporate deals were based on solar energy where wind farms are highly sustainable.
In addition, Texas oil and gas production has experienced an increasing demand in the past few years. As initially reported by Green Tech Media, oil companies including ExxonMobil, Occidental Petroleum and Energy Transfer Partners are looking to make major impacts in the overall corporate renewables market. ExxonMobil authorized 500 megawatts wind and solar power in West Texas’ Permian Basin in late 2018.
TheHouston Chronicle also reported that Baker Hughes signed deals with developers Apex Clean Energy and 7X Energy for Texas to transition into sourcing 100 percent of the state’s electricity from wind and solar power.
BNEF data shows a rise in corporate renewable energy deals around the world during 2019. The global market reached a record-setting 19.5 gigawatts of new contracts, a 40 percent increase compared to 2018’s previous record.
Although 23 countries signed off corporate deals, the U.S. was responsible for nearly all of the market’s growth, as initially stated by Green Tech Media. Europe only experienced a “modest” increase in contracted capacity, while Asia overall saw a slight decrease.
As some residents may believe companies shifting away from federal subsidies for wind and solar projects may damage the corporate renewables market, the BNEF previously stated that the overall U.S. market continues to stabilize.
“These are long-term commitments,” BNEF sustainability analyst Kyle Harrison said to Green Tech Media. “A lot of tech companies, for example, even if they’ve already reached their goals, their electricity demand continues to grow as they continue to build factories and data centers.”
