Materials science company Dow has signed eight new renewable power purchase agreements (RPAs) spanning Europe and the Americas.
The power supplied by the new agreements is expected to reduce Dow’s scope 2 emissions by more than 600,000 tonnes of CO2e per year.
The new RPAs provide cost competitive access to an additional 132MW of clean power capacity from wind and solar, with zero capital investment from the Company, bringing Dow’s total access to more than 850MW of clean energy.
This is well ahead of its 2025 Sustainability Goal aligned to power from renewable sources.
Dow president of feedstocks and energy Jack Broodo said: “Dow’s ambition to be the most sustainable materials science company in the world includes making efforts to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.
“As one of the leading purchasers of clean power in the chemical industry and among the top 20 clean energy purchasers of corporations globally, we continually pursue opportunities to move our sites to cleaner, more cost-effective power while ensuring reliable operations.
“These agreements will keep Dow competitive now and into the future as we continue to deliver products and innovations that ultimately keep carbon emissions out of the environment.”
The RPAs include six agreements that have enabled eight Dow sites across Spain, UK, Sweden, France, and Germany to transition to 100% green electricity.
Several other Dow sites across Europe have also transitioned to a cleaner grid power mix or are importing renewable power to complement the self-generation needed to assure reliable operations.
In Latin America, Dow has signed a long-term agreement in Brazil with Casa dos Ventos aligned to the construction of a new wind power plant in Rio Grande do Norte state.
The agreement provides Dow’s site in Cabangu, Brazil, with access to cost competitive capacity for wind-generated electricity, with the assurance of 60MW of continuous renewable power, which will supply power for silicon metal production
Furthermore, in North America, a long-term agreement with Capital Power Corporation in Alberta, Canada will provide clean power capacity, replacing approximately 40% of the energy demand at Dow’s Prentiss, Alberta site for polyethylene production.
The RPA with Capital Power, supplied through the company’s Whitla 2 wind farm, supports grid diversity and provides greater access to renewable power for both industry and consumers in Alberta.
These agreements build on four RPAs Dow signed in 2020, which provided the company with access to additional solar and wind capacity to reduce Dow’s scope two emissions by 225,000 metric tons of CO2e.