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U.S. EPA awards two Silicon Valley companies Green Power Partner of the Year

Release Date: 10/27/2008
Contact Information: Wendy Chavez, 415/947-4248, chavez.wendy@epa.gov

Cisco, Intel combined commitment avoids emissions equivalent to 220,000 cars on the road per year

SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today recognized Intel Corporation and Cisco Systems with its Green Power Partner of the Year Award for their voluntary efforts to address climate change by purchasing green power and helping advance the development of the nation’s green power market.

“These two companies have distinguished themselves through their purchases, overall strategies, and impacts on the green power markets,” said Deborah Jordan, the EPA’s Air Division director for the Pacific Southwest region. “They are leading the way for other businesses to go green.”

Santa Clara, Calif.-based Intel Corporation’s current green power purchase of more than 1.3 billion kilowatt-hours is equivalent to avoiding the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of nearly 170,000 passenger vehicles per year, or the equivalent amount of electricity needed to power more than 120,000 average American homes annually.

In addition to Intel’s green power purchase, the company’s venture capital arm invests selectively in various clean technology areas, including solar photovoltaics, to support innovation in start-ups and use of renewables worldwide. Besides promoting greater energy efficiency in its facilities, over the past seven years Intel has invested more than $20 million toward over 250 energy conservation projects that saved over 500 million kWh.

San Jose, Calif.-based Cisco Systems’ current green power purchase of more than 385 million kWh is equivalent to avoiding CO2 emissions of nearly 50,000 passenger vehicles per year, or the equivalent amount of electricity needed to power more than 36,000 average American homes annually.

Cisco’s purchase represents nearly 44 percent of its total annual electricity usage across its U.S. operations, and places the company among the largest buyers of green power on the EPA’s national top 25 list. The company’s purchase of green power is supplied manly from biomass, wind, solar and small hydro sources. It plans to increase its green power purchase by 22 million kWh in 2009, including various on-site renewable electric systems for its facilities. In June, Cisco announced a corporate global greenhouse gas reduction goal of 25 percent by 2012, and is using green power both in the United States and internationally to meet its goal.

Green power is generated from renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, biomass and low-impact hydro. Green power sources produce electricity with an environmental profile superior to conventional power technologies and produce no human-caused greenhouse gas emissions. Purchases of green power also help accelerate the development of new renewable energy capacity nationwide.

Nominees are evaluated on the size and characteristics of their green power commitment, ingenuity used to overcome barriers, internal and external communication efforts, as well as overall renewable energy strategy.

The Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that encourages organizations to buy green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use. The partnership currently has more than 1000 partner organizations voluntarily purchasing billions of kilowatt-hours of green power annually. Partners include a wide variety of leading organizations such as Fortune 500 companies, small and medium sized businesses, local, state, and federal governments, and colleges and universities. For additional information and to see a complete list of the awardees nationwide, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/greenpower