Source: independent.co.uk
America's biggest coal producer is taking the plunge on renewables by launching a joint venture in solar power.
Peabody Energy Corp. announced on Tuesday that it has launched R3 Renewables with two investment firms to build utility-scale solar projects on or near former coal mining operations.
The St. Louis-based company will develop 3.3 Gigawatts (GW) of solar - enough to power about 2 million homes - and 1.6 GW of battery storage capacity over the next five years. R3 Renewables will develop on large tracts of land in Indiana and Illinois.
"We are pleased to announce this new joint venture as part of Peabody's commitment to be the coal producer of choice, creating additional value from our existing assets, supporting our own and our customers' ESG ambitions and providing added economic benefits for the communities in which we work and live," said Jim Grech, President and CEO of Peabody.
Peabodyは140年近く石炭採掘を行っており、オーストラリアのニューサウスウェールズ州と米国のワイオミング州、アラバマ州、インディアナ州、ニューメキシコ州で操業しています。
The company did not report the size of the investment but it appears that its primary focus will remain in the fossil fuel industry. The Independent left a message for Peabody's representative seeking comment.
Coal is the dirtiest, most carbon-intensive of fossil fuels. While it generated 24 per cent of US electricity in 2019, the fossil fuel accounted for about このセクターのCO2排出量の61％.
2020年には、風力、水力発電、太陽エネルギー、バイオマス、地熱エネルギー-などの再生可能エネルギー源-が、米国の電力の約21％を生成し、その上に化石ガスのみがありました。
In the same year, use of renewables surpassed both nuclear and coal for the first time in history, reported the 米国エネルギー情報局。
米国が気候危機への取り組みの一環として、ジョー・バイデン大統領は国を化石燃料から切り離し、2035年までにクリーンな電力部門を作り、2050年までにゼロエミッション経済を実現することを約束しました。
