The business consulting firm Frost & Sullivan recently released its “Analysis of the U.S. Utility Scale Solar Power Market“, and their report found that the United States will attract a whopping $20.44 billion in solar power investments by 2016. There is no shortage of solar companies in the Bay Area and across the state, and now more states are starting to invest more time and money into solar energy projects.
American states aren’t the only American institutions that are utilizing solar power; there are quite a few American companies that are starting to rely more on solar power for their energy needs. These aren’t small mom and pop operations; there are big corporations that are reaping the benefits of clean solar energy. You may find yourself a little shocked when you learn which successful Fortune 500 corporations and companies have been harnessing the power of the sun.
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart has been condemned in the past for their questionable environmental practices, but the multinational retailer has been slowly reforming their business to become more ecofriendly. People were shocked last year when the Solar Energy Industries Association announced that Wal-Mart was number one on their list of top commercial solar customers in the United States. According to their report Wal-Mart has 144 solar energy systems installed in seven states that have a total installed capacity of 65,000 kW.
Intel
Intel may be one of the greenest companies in Silicon Valley. People were amazed when they unveiled their designs for a solar powered computer processor a few years ago, but that’s only one of the many ways Intel uses solar power. Intel purchases more than 1.4 billion kilowatt hours of solar energy per year, and the company uses solar power for more than 50% of their energy needs. Their use of billions of kilowatt is the equivalent to taking over 180,000 gas powered passenger cars off the road, or providing green energy to over 140,000 homes every year.
Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson has been around for over a century, so it’s no surprise that this company was one of the first to really get involved in the solar energy movement. Johnson & Johnson campuses have been generating more than 8 megawatts of solar energy since 2002. In 2010 the company built the largest solar panel array in New Jersey to power one of their sites, and they’re currently trying to add more panels to their store locations.
Toys R’ Us
Toys R’ Us has been making steady strides in becoming a more environmentally friendly company. They’ve installed four different solar energy systems in their New Jersey locations, and their largest distribution center in the country runs on solar power. Their solar panels generate around 5.7 megawatts of energy every year. All of the energy they save could provide clean energy to power 315,000 Wii consoles a year.