International businesses back new initiative to boost carbon-free power across the world
24 September 2024, 11:23 UTC | 2 min read
- Google, AstraZeneca, Iron Mountain Data Centers, Shree Cement, AirTrunk, and Vodafone UK join Climate Group’s new pilot campaign as Founding Partners.
- Climate Group’s 24/7 Carbon-Free Coalition will support large global corporates to revolutionise electricity procurement and reduce carbon emissions.
Tuesday 24 September, New York – Major international companies join forces with Climate Group to move towards 24/7 carbon-free electricity (CFE) – and match their electricity with carbon-free power every hour, every day, sourced from the same grid.
Google, AstraZeneca, Iron Mountain Data Centers, Shree Cement, AirTrunk and Vodafone UK join Climate Group’s 24/7 Carbon-Free Coalition as Founding Partners to help shape the campaign during its pilot period, ahead of the campaign’s wider rollout in 2025.
Climate Group’s 24/7 Coalition will work together to show the benefits of adopting 24/7 CFE, which focuses on delivering carbon-free electricity to local grids to match corporate electricity.
The pilot campaign will be launched at the 24/7 CFE: What, Why and How? event at Climate Week NYC (Tuesday 24 September, 2pm EST). Kate Brandt, Chief Sustainability Officer, Google; Ben Norbury, Global Climate Lead, AstraZeneca; Wilson Ricks, Princeton University; and Andrew Mayock, Federal Chief Sustainability Officer, US Federal Government, will be part of a panel discussing the role corporates can play in achieving 100% 24/7 carbon-free electricity.
Global electricity demand continues to grow. It has almost doubled from 2000 to 2023, and for carbon emissions to fall, clean electricity needs to meet and exceed new electricity demand (Ember). While 40% of the world’s electricity (Bloomberg NEF) came from carbon-free sources last year, there is evidence3 that 24/7 CFE adoption is the most effective way businesses can accelerate further decarbonisation of global electricity grids, while supporting energy security, enhancing economic competitiveness, and driving new job growth.
24/7 carbon-free electricity will encourage innovation by deploying a broad set of technologies – including increasing renewables, improving battery storage, and using flexible and dispatchable tech to fill gaps when more intermittent carbon-free sources aren’t available. Sourcing from the local grid will incentivise companies to engage with local policy makers and stakeholders to drive broader changes to the electricity system.
Climate Group is calling on business leaders to start their 24/7 CFE journey, and move towards measuring and matching their electricity needs with carbon-free electricity each hour, every day, from the same electricity grid.
Businesses taking this ambitious step will not only work towards fully decarbonizing their own electricity consumption, but also drive new solutions to transform electricity systems to run entirely on carbon-free electricity.
“We are asking ambitious business leaders to go further to reduce carbon emissions by choosing to use carbon-free electricity 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. By taking this step, the 24/7 Carbon-Free Coalition’s Founding Partners, and other corporates that change their electricity procurement, will help accelerate the roll-out of new renewables, advance battery and carbon-free tech, and eliminate the need for 'back-up' fossil fuels.”
Helen Clarkson, CEO, Climate Group
“Google set a goal in 2020 to run on 24/7 carbon-free energy on every grid where we operate by 2030. Innovative partnerships are key to making 24/7 CFE a reality for everyone, and we’re excited to work with other climate leaders on this important challenge. Whether you’re already targeting 24/7 CFE or just getting started on your journey, together we can accelerate decarbonization in this critical decade for climate action.”
Kate Brandt, Chief Sustainability Officer, Google
"While organizations may be at varying stages of their energy transition, considering 24/7 as their next step can be an impactful way to take climate action and accelerate renewable energy use. At AstraZeneca, we want to play a role in enabling the energy transition and a collective shift in corporate mindsets by demonstrating that 24/7 CFE is not only possible but brings many benefits.”
Liz Chatwin, Vice President, Global Sustainability, AstraZeneca