Renewable energy powers most operations: Apple

A year after incurring harsh criticism for failing to use enough renewable energy, Apple now powers 75 per cent of its corporate facilities from renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, the company has revealed.

While the factories of many of its suppliers in China still run on fossil fuels, Apple’s corporate headquarters in Silicon Valley, Munich (Germany), Austin (Texas) and Cork (Ireland) as well as its largest data centre in Maiden (North Carolina) now run on renewable energy such as solar and wind, Apple said in its annual environmental progress report.

“Several of our largest and most energy-intensive locations are now running entirely on renewables, including our offices at One Infinite Loop, in Austin and Cork, Ireland,” said Scott Brodrick with Apple’s worldwide product marketing group.

“We’re especially proud of our progress at our data centre in Maiden, which we said at the start would be a model of green building and we’ve followed through on that. So when you download an iTunes song, for example, it’s coming from a facility that’s powered 100-per-cent on renewable energy.” The report, which was posted on the company’s website, said that its use of renewables has jumped 114 per cent since 2010.

The progress was welcomed by Greenpeace, which last year ranked the company almost last in its report on the green efforts of tech companies.

“Apple’s announcement shows that it has made real progress in its commitment to lead the way to a clean energy future.

“Apple’s increased level of disclosure about its energy sources helps customers know that their iCloud will be powered by clean energy sources, not coal,” Greenpeace senior IT analyst Gary Cook said in a statement.