(Credit: Duke Energy)Wells Fargo says it will purchase more than 58 megawatts of solar capacity from a planned solar project in North Carolina. When the Blackburn Solar project comes online, the power generated is expected to offset about 50% of the bank’s energy usage in the state.
Investing in solar energy development will help the bank reduce carbon emissions while supporting grid resilience. In March, Wells Fargo announced a goal of reaching net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. It was the last of the US’s six largest banks to commit to a net-zero goal, pointed out Fortune.
The Blackburn Solar project is a planned facility on 600 acres in Catawba County, North Carolina; it will be developed, owned and operated by a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources and is expected to come online in 2022.
Wells Fargo is making use of Duke Energy’s Green Source Advantage program, which allows large customers to offset their power purchases by securing renewable energy from projects connected to the Duke Energy grid. The customer may keep the renewable energy certificates (RECs) of the projects to satisfy sustainability or carbon-free goals.
Duke Energy says it maintains more than 3,500 megawatts of solar power on its energy grid in North Carolina. The company also operates more than 40 solar facilities in the state. North Carolina currently ranks third in the nation for overall solar power.
Wells Fargo’s net-zero commitment announcement in march came just a week after Goldman Sachs and Citigroup announced similar goals. Bank of America stated its net-zero commitment in February.
