Acer will meet its global carbon emissions reduction target for 2015 ahead of schedule, with the announcement of an initiative to provide clean energy for its US-based operations.
Acer has elected to join the EPA Green Power Partner programme and purchased enough green power to offset 100% of its carbon emissions from electricity at all US facilities.
The purchase of more than 27-million kilowatt-hours of green power in the form of renewable energy credits (RECs) will reduce emissions from Acer’s US facilities through the end of 2015.
Along with the renewable energy purchase, Acer is now included in the Green Power Leadership Club and also listed on the 100% Green Power Users and Top 30 Tech and Telecom top partner ranking lists in the US. The RECs purchased by Acer are sourced from a blend of renewable energy types including wind power and biomass.
A Dow Jones Sustainability Indices-listed company, Acer has a dedicated sustainability strategy. The company is committed to conducting annual greenhouse gas inventories, improving efficiency in its products, operations and data centres, and engaging its supply chain to address climate change risk through its membership in the Carbon Disclosure Project Supply Chain programme.
The company has established global emissions reduction targets of 30% by 2015 and 60% by 2020, from levels in 2009. The challenge for Acer to reduce carbon emissions from its operations which comprise of sales and marketing offices and service centres is greater compared to companies with manufacturing facilities.
“Acer has steadily reduced its energy consumption since 2009 through investments in more energy efficient air conditioning and lighting equipment, among other efforts, in our offices around the world,” says Acer corporate president and CEO, Jason Chen. “The latest initiative by our US operations to use 100% green energy demonstrates our commitment as a corporate citizen to work with our stakeholders to build a sustainable corporation and environment.”
The e-enabling data centre (eDC) in Taiwan was the first of Acer’s operations to install renewable energy generation facilities. In 2011, Acer’s German and Italian operations started procuring green power, and this was followed in 2013 by its EMEA headquarters in Switzerland. With the latest addition of renewable energy use by its US operations, Acer estimates that the ratio of green power usage by Acer worldwide will exceed 30% by the end of 2014.
Through the international Carbon Disclosure Supply Chain Program initiative, Acer and participating member companies are able to use their leverage as global purchasing organisations to encourage greater uptake of efficiency among their key suppliers.
In addition to training and setting the energy-saving and carbon reduction goals for its suppliers, Acer is working towards lowering overall carbon emissions of its products’ entire life cycle through innovative product design.