State Farm’s extended dedication to solar energy will help the company cut its carbon footprint by close to 74,000 metric tons annually. Additionally, this undertaking will bolster the creation of 50 megawatts of novel solar power.
State Farm and Constellation have teamed up to provide 50 megawatts of renewable energy annually to power State Farm’s operations center, corporate headquarters, and other facilities in Bloomington with zero-emission renewable energy.
State Farm and Swift Current Energy have entered into a 12-year agreement, set to begin in January 2025. As part of this agreement, State Farm will receive renewable energy certificates (RECs) and energy from the Double Black Diamond Solar Project of Swift Current Energy located in downstate Illinois. Constellation and Swift Current Energy have a long-term agreement in place under which Constellation will buy some of the energy and RECs created by Double Black Diamond. The solar project is slated to begin construction at the end of 2022.
Double Black Diamond Wind Farm will provide State Farm with 103,000-megawatt hours of energy each year. This is expected to help reduce the company’s carbon footprint by 74,000 metric tons per year. Overall, eight State Farm facilities in Bloomington will procure energy from Double Black Diamond. If we put this into perspective, these emissions are equal to that of 16,000 gasoline-powered passenger vehicles driven for a whole year. This statistic comes from the U.S. EPA greenhouse gas equivalencies.
State Farm is dedicated to mitigating its environmental impact and addressing climate change by lessening its carbon footprint, reducing waste, and improving energy efficiency. Jenny Greminger, the vice president of Public Affairs and Administrative Services at State Farm, stated, “Caring for the people and the environment where we reside and work is an important part of being a good neighbor.” Today’s announcement affirms State Farm’s dedication to being a good neighbor.
State Farm will utilize the Constellation Off-Site Renewables (CORe) product to ease its renewable energy transaction. The CORe provides an avenue for customers to enjoy large-scale renewable energy projects’ economic and environmental perks. It is one of Constellation’s retail power products that assist customers in meeting their carbon reduction goals. Customers also can monitor their power usage and match it with carbon-free energy production on a 24/7 basis.
Jim McHugh, the chief commercial officer of Constellation, said, “This long-term agreement between State Farm and us displays State Farm’s commitment to fighting the climate crisis while simultaneously supporting the construction of a new renewable asset.” We’re thrilled to help State Farm on its sustainability journey by providing a zero-emissions energy solution that aids in carbon reduction.
State Farm has created the goal to reduce the emission of greenhouse gas by 50 percent by 2030. They’re working diligently towards this via numerous methods to advance renewable energy generation in markets with the most significant operations.
“We are ecstatic that State Farm’s buildings in Illinois will experience the perks of carbon-free energy from Double Black Diamond Solar,” said Matt Birchby, co-founder and president of Swift Current Energy. “By investing in power from the project, State Farm is also creating jobs during construction and long-term tax revenue for communities within Illinois.”
The Double Black Diamond solar project, run by Swift Current Energy, has an estimated 593-megawatt capacity. This will produce enough electricity to power more than 85 thousand homes in Illinois. The project, which is located in Sangamon and Morgan counties downstate, is expected to be completed around the end of 2024.
Jonas Muthoni is an entrepreneur and renewable energy expert. He is the founder of MicroGridMedia.com, a website dedicated to bringing the latest news and information about solar energy and other renewable energy sources to the public. Jonas is passionate about promoting sustainable energy solutions and educating the public about the benefits of renewable energy. He is a regular speaker at industry events and conferences and is committed to driving the transition to a cleaner and more sustainable energy future.