Walmart commits to almost 1 GW of fresh clean energy in US

US retail chain Walmart (NYSE:WMT) on Tuesday said it is stepping up its clean energy purchases with the addition of nearly 1 GW of new renewables projects across the US to its portfolio.

Walmart is investing in two community solar and distributed generation portfolios, developed by Pivot Energy and Reactivate. The portfolios include a total of 26 projects located across six states and representing 70 MW of capacity. Pivot Energy said separately Walmart will back the construction of 19 projects via tax equity investment.

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In addition, the retailer has signed long-term renewable energy purchase agreements with three developers, NextEra Energy Resources, EDP Renewable North America and Invenergy, for solar projects that will add 842 MW of capacity to the grid. The agreements see Walmart step into new regions, including its home state of Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi, and expand its renewable portfolio in Texas.

EDP Renewables North America LLC (EDPR NA) said it has signed a 15-year power purchase agreement (PPA) under which Walmart will offtake a 162-MW portion of a new 180-MW solar project in Texas. Walmart already has deals to procure 233 MW of utility-scale solar and wind energy and 36 MW of distributed solar from EDPR NA.

Walmart said the contracts with the three developers add to 2 GW of renewable energy projects it previously helped bring online through long-term renewable energy purchase agreements.

The retail chain has also entered into several clean energy agreements directly with utilities that will deliver a further 77 MW of capacity in Louisiana, Michigan and Texas.

Overall, the newly announced renewables transactions augment Walmart's existing portfolio, which includes over 600 onsite and offsite renewable energy projects already in operation or under development in more than 10 countries. They support the company’s goals to enable 10 GW of new clean energy projects by 2030 and to be 100% powered by renewable energy by 2035.