Advanced Energy Buyers Group Brings Major Companies Together on Policies to Increase Procurement Opportunities

WASHINGTON, Sept. 7, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, national business organization Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) announced the launch of the Advanced Energy Buyers Group, a collection of large energy users seeking to expand access to energy that is secure, clean, and affordable. The Advanced Energy Buyers Group brings together corporate leaders committed to changing the policy landscape to increase opportunities for purchasing renewable energy and other advanced energy resources. Founding members of AEE's Advanced Energy Buyers Group include Walmart, Salesforce, Microsoft, Lockheed Martin, Amazon, and Aligned Energy.

"A growing number of companies have made a commitment to advanced energy by setting renewable energy or energy-related sustainability targets, but antiquated market and regulatory barriers stand in the way," said Malcolm Woolf, SVP of policy at Advanced Energy Economy (AEE), which will facilitate the work of the new group. "With establishment of the Advanced Energy Buyers Group, industry and community leaders will have a new voice to advocate for federal and state policies that will expand access to all forms of advanced energy."

According to a report published by AEE last year, 71 Fortune 100 companies have set renewable energy or energy-related sustainability targets, and the number is growing each year. More than 100 companies globally have committed to sourcing 100 percent of their electricity from renewable resources.

In many markets across the country, policies and regulations must be brought up to date to allow companies to reach the goals they have set. The Advanced Energy Buyers Group will work toward policy solutions that make it easier for companies to pursue advanced energy solutions like wind power, fuel cells, demand response, energy storage, hydropower, solar, and more.

"As Microsoft buys more renewable power, we are looking for ways to make these energy sources more affordable and accessible – for ourselves as well as other businesses and households," said Rob Bernard, chief environmental strategist at Microsoft. "We've made good progress, but more work needs to be done to advance policies that make it easier and cheaper for more companies, schools, hospitals and families to buy clean energy. These policies help support businesses, create new jobs, strengthen our electricity grid and create a more sustainable future."

"Salesforce is committed to reaching 100 percent renewable energy across global operations and to improving the state of the world," said Patrick Flynn, senior director of sustainability, Salesforce. "We recently announced that Salesforce has achieved net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, that we're providing a carbon neutral cloud for our customers and that we're the first Fortune 500 company to participate in San Francisco's CleanPower SF program. Reaching 100 percent renewable energy is an ambitious target and we believe it can be done by working with peers, policymakers and local utilities."

"The Advanced Energy Buyers Group is a new voice to engage legislators and regulators on policy issues -- an important aspect for a market that has been moving towards renewables as the energy of choice," said Lily Donge, principal, Business Renewables Center, Rocky Mountain Institute.

About Advanced Energy Economy
Advanced Energy Economy is a national association of businesses that are making the energy we use secure, clean, and affordable. Advanced energy encompasses a broad range of products and services that constitute the best available technologies for meeting energy needs today and tomorrow. AEE's mission is to transform public policy to enable rapid growth of advanced energy businesses. AEE and its State and Regional Partner organizations are active in 27 states across the country, representing more than 1,000 companies and organizations in the advanced energy industry. Visit AEE online at www.aee.net.

About the Advanced Energy Buyers Group
The Advanced Energy Buyers Group is a collection of large energy users seeking to expand access to energy that is secure, clean, and affordable. Its membership is open to companies across all industry sectors, as well as public entities, educational institutions, hospitals, and other entities interested in procuring advanced energy. The AE Buyers Group is facilitated by AEE with the goal of elevating the voice of advanced energy purchasers on policy issues that impact access to advanced energy.

Additional Resources:

• Expanding Corporate Access to Advanced Energy: Sample Policies to Meet Growing Demand (September 2017) - Recognizing that changing the policy landscape is key to enable companies to purchase advanced energy how and where they want to, AEE Institute has developed sample policies that states can enact to expand corporate access to advanced energy.
• Making Corporate Renewable Energy Purchasing Work for All Utility Customers (July 2017) - Based on case studies from states across the country, AEE Institute identifies design principles to ensure voluntary utility renewable energy tariffs will deliver on potential benefits without impacting nonparticipants.
• Essential Elements of Next-Generation Renewable Energy Tariffs (July 2017) - This policy brief from AEE distills the six key elements to ensure that utility programs will meet the needs of customers.
• 2016 Corporate Advanced Energy Commitments (December 2016) AEE reports that 71 Fortune 100 companies have set renewable energy or sustainability targets, up from 60 just two years ago. 
• Private Procurement, Public Benefit: Integrating Corporate Renewable Energy Purchases with Utility Resource Planning (December 2016) - In a report for AEE Institute, the Center for New Energy Economy at Colorado State University (CNEE) explores the benefits of incorporating corporate renewable energy targets into the utility resource planning process. 
• Opportunities to Increase Corporate Access to Advanced Energy: A National Brief (August 2016) AEE Institute commissioned Meister Consultants Group (MCG) to assess policy changes that states can enact to expand corporate access to renewable energy. 

See this statement online here.

Media Contact:
Monique Hanis, [email protected], 202-391-0884

SOURCE Advanced Energy Economy

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