As Amazon announces plans to build a 115MW wind farm in Ireland to offset the company’s energy consumption, we take a look at why more and more companies are going down the route of generating their own energy.
The project will make Amazon the largest single corporate buyer of renewable energy on the island of Ireland and the company have announced plans to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040, ten years ahead of the global Paris Agreement. Amazon also released plans in June that state it aims to hit 100% renewables by 2025 and they currently have 31 wind and solar projects globally, generating 2,900 MW annually. As well as this the company is redesigning the roofs on their data centres to capture rainwater for cooling and are already using evaporative cooling systems which draw on outside air to cool their servers.
Whilst Amazon is a massive global enterprise and can afford to forge ahead with these environmentally friendly plans without relying on public funding there are lots of smaller businesses throughout the UK and Ireland who are looking into renewable energy sources to help improve their businesses. Why? There are a number of advantages. Helping the environment and achieving net zero emissions by 2050 is the most obvious one. Reducing carbon emissions is key to reducing global warming.
Reducing your businesses energy costs is another massive advantage when it comes to using renewable energy sources. Northern Ireland Water has the largest electricity bill in Northern at a whopping £30 million per annum and they are continually innovating and using renewable sources of energy to help reduce this spend. Everun is working with Belfast Harbour on their plans to turn the Harbour Estate into a Smart Energy District and it’s envisaged that they could develop their own leading edge micro-grid energy network with several sustainable and renewable energy generation sources including wind, solar and hydrogen. This will allow Belfast Harbour to pass savings on to the businesses operating within the Harbour Estate as well as run the 2,000 acre Estate in the most green and environmentally efficient way possible.
At Everun we are committed to helping businesses achieve zero carbon emissions and our team have a vast amount of knowledge and experience. If generating power from wind is something you’ve thought about, the first step is a simple feasibility study and our team can help.
