According to fourth-quarter 2015 market report from the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), released in January, some three-quarters of the capacity contracted through power purchase agreements during the fourth quarter were through large companies, such as Procter & Gamble, General Motors, and Google Energy, rather than through utilities on behalf of retail customers. In fact, non-utility customers accounted for 52 percent of 2015’s total of over 4,000 MW of wind PPAs. Non-utility customers include some universities and city governments, but the vast majority are corporations.
The development reflects a new trend with lots of potential to drive growth in wind power, writes David Labrador at the Rocky Mountain Institute. First-time buyers made two-thirds of 2015’s corporate renewable purchases, and yet while Forty-three percent of Fortune 500 companies have clean energy or climate targets, only a handful have signed PPAs, according to Hervé Touati, RMI managing director – so that many more companies can be expected to are enter the market.
The full article, "U.S. Wind Power Demand: Corporations Take the Lead, by David Labrador, February 22, is here.