(Credit: Constellation)State Farm recently announced a 50 megawatt agreement with Constellation to purchase zero-emission, renewable energy, equivalent to the annual electricity use of its corporate headquarters, operations center, and other facilities in Bloomington, Illinois.
Through a 12-year agreement beginning in January 2025, State Farm will receive energy and renewable energy certificates (RECs) from Swift Current Energy’s Double Black Diamond Solar Project in downstate Illinois. This is made possible by a long-term agreement between Constellation and Swift Current Energy under which Constellation will purchase a portion of the energy and RECs generated by Double Black Diamond. Construction of the solar project is expected to start by the end of 2022.
In total, eight State Farm facilities in Bloomington will procure approximately 103,000 megawatt hours of energy per year from Double Black Diamond, which is expected to help the company reduce its carbon footprint by nearly 74,000 metric tons annually.
State Farm will use the Constellation Offsite Renewables (CORe) product to facilitate its renewable energy transaction. CORe connects customers to the economic and sustainability benefits of large-scale, offsite renewable energy projects and is among Constellation’s suite of retail power products that help customers achieve their carbon reduction goals. Customers also have opportunities to match power usage hour-by-hour with locally produced carbon-free energy.
State Farm has set the goal of a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and is getting there by taking a variety of steps to promote the creation of renewable energy generation in those markets where it has its largest operations.
To meet this goal, State Farm will initially emphasize reductions in direct GHG emissions, such as those from company facilities and vehicles; and indirect GHG emissions, such as those from the generation of electricity supplied to the company.
Through ongoing efforts to improve energy efficiency, more than 80% of State Farm buildings already have an internally calculated Energy Star Score of 75 or higher. For instance, the company has installed energy- efficient appliances and equipment in its facilities. An Energy Star Score of 75 and higher classifies a building a ‘top performer’ by energystar.gov and Energy Star-certified buildings use an average of 35% less energy than non-certified buildings, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency.
