In 2019, Amazon set a goal to match all electricity used at its global operations with 100% renewable energy by 2030. It achieved this target seven years early.
According to a news post on Amazon’s website, the company’s global operations include corporate buildings, data centers, grocery stores, and fulfillment centers. The company stated it reached its goal by becoming the world’s largest corporate purchaser of renewable energy and investing billions of dollars in over 500 solar and wind projects worldwide. Combined, these projects generate enough energy to power 7.6 million homes.
"Reaching our renewable energy goal is an incredible achievement, and we’re proud of the work we’ve done to get here, seven years early," Amazon Chief Sustainability Officer Kara Hurst was quoted as saying in the post. "We also know that this is just a moment in time, and our work to decarbonize our operations will not always be the same each year—we’ll continue to make progress, while also constantly evolving on our path to 2040."
The Amazon Air Hub is a $1.5 billion investment that opened in 2021, according to the NKY Business Journal. The Amazon Air Hub partnered with Duke Energy to enhance its sustainability efforts by installing Kentucky's largest utility-scale rooftop solar array. This project features over 5,600 photovoltaic panels on the Air Hub's 800,000-square-foot rooftop, generating up to 2 megawatts of solar power. This energy is fed directly into the electric distribution grid, providing clean electricity to approximately 400 homes and businesses in Northern Kentucky.
"This project is one of five renewable energy projects in Kentucky that are helping Amazon power our operations with renewable energy while simultaneously generating positive benefits for the local communities we work with," Amazon Air Hub Head of Operations Jess Stewart said of the collaboration. "In our efforts to reach net zero, Amazon is committed to matching the electricity used by our operations with renewable energy and enabling carbon-free energy projects around the world—that’s why we continue to support a growing number of renewable energy projects in Kentucky."
According to the post, Amazon considers this achievement an important milestone toward meeting its Climate Pledge goal of net-zero carbon by 2040. Since 2019, the company has also enabled renewable projects in 27 countries, including India, Greece, South Africa, Japan, and Indonesia.