Mobile communications giant Verizon has become one of the leading corporate buyers of renewable energy in the US after revealing that it has signed six new 15-year solar power-purchase agreements (PPA) adding up to 845MW.
It now has almost 1.7GW of renewables PPAs, after announcing deals for 840MW of wind and solar last year.
The company has signed three PPAs with developer Invenergy for a total of 525MW, which will be operational by the end of 2023 and a deal with Lightsource BP for the power from its 152.5MW Bellflower solar project in Indiana, to be up and running in late 2022.
Details of its two other PPAs are vague, with Verizon stating that it has also signed a 92.5MW PPA with EDF Renewables, and a 75MW deal with NextEra Energy Resources, both in the PJM Interconnection regional market in the US Northeast and to be completed in late 2022 and late 2023, respectively.
Verizon tells Recharge it will not reveal any further details about the projects at this time due to confidentiality agreements with the developers. Lightsource BP unveiled the details of its deal with the US company separately.
All 13 PPAs are being funded by two $1bn green bonds issued by Verizon.
The Bellflower project is notable as it has been designed in collaboration with ecologists to “restore and conserve pollinator habitat” and will be part of a university study to determine how solar installations affect such habitats.
The largest corporate renewables buyers in the US are currently Amazon (6.5GW) and Google/Alphabet (5.5GW).
