Clothes retailer Gap is to buy 90MW of electricity from Enel Green Power North America’s 299MW Aurora wind farm in the US state of North Dakota.
Aurora is located in Williams and Mountrail counties in North Dakota and will generate approximately 1.3 terawatt-hours of electricity a year when it comes online by the end of 2020.
The 12-year virtual power purchase agreement will help Gap to reach its 2020 goal to reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions for its owned and operated facilities by 50% compared with 2015.
The company also announced it has set a goal to reach 100% renewable energy across its global owned and operated facilities by 2030.
Gap president and chief executive Art Peck said: “We have a responsibility to reduce our climate impact. For Gap, being a part of the climate solution means making strategic investments in clean energy generation.
“Today we have secured a path to achieving our 2020 goal, but we must do more.
“I’m proud to commit to renewable energy for 100% of our stores, headquarters and distribution centers globally by 2030.”
Gap operates more than 3300 stores worldwide, however the vast majority of its distributed store fleet are leased sites located in buildings and malls owned by landlords, limiting the company’s ability to implement onsite renewable energy assets.
The agreement with Enel Green Power allows Gap to meet its renewable energy goal by aggregating its distributed electricity load in the US and purchasing wind energy equivalent to the energy needs of over 1500 retail stores in its global real estate portfolio.
Enel Green Power head Antonio Cammisecra said: “This partnership with Gap demonstrates how global brands are increasingly turning to us for our extensive expertise in creating flexible and customised solutions that address unique renewable energy needs.
“With partnerships like this one, which create immediate returns while furthering emission reduction strategies, Enel Green Power once again reaffirms the strong bond between sustainability and value creation.”
Gap was advised on the deal by Schneider Electric Energy & Sustainability Services.