222-MW solar project puts Anheuser-Busch brewing at 100% renewable electricity

Anheuser-Busch‘s entire portfolio of domestic beer and seltzer brands — including Bud Light, Michelob ULTRA, Busch and its Brewers Collective family of craft partners — is now brewed with 100% renewable electricity from solar and wind power.

Credit: Anheuser-Busch

The Anheuser-Busch Solar Farm, the brewer’s 222-MW_ac solar project in Texas, officially comes online this month, marking the early achievement of Anheuser-Busch’s Sustainability Goal to source 100% of its purchased electricity from renewables by 2025.

The Anheuser-Busch Solar Farm is located in Pecos County, Texas and was developed in partnership with Recurrent Energy, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Canadian Solar. It is the largest solar project for the beverage industry in the United States. Construction took nearly two years and created approximately 500 full-time jobs during the peak of construction.

“At Anheuser-Busch we dream big in everything we do, including our commitment to creating a more sustainable future for our partners, our consumers, and our communities,” said Michel Doukeris, CEO of Anheuser-Busch. “Achieving this ambitious sustainability goal four years early means that each time someone reaches for an Anheuser-Busch product, they are choosing one that contributes to a more sustainable future.”

In celebration of meeting this milestone four years ahead of schedule, this World Environment Day the company is donating $100,000 to the Green Restaurant Association to support its work of creating environmental sustainability in the restaurant industry through certification and educational resources, during a time of crucial rebuilding and recovery.

“I applaud Anheuser-Busch on shifting production to brew beer with 100 percent renewable electricity – marking an impressive milestone, years ahead of schedule,” said U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire. “Businesses in America, both large and small, have an important role to play in combating the existential threat of climate change. I look forward to seeing more companies in the private sector follow Anheuser-Busch’s example to shrink their carbon footprint and ensure a greener, healthier future for our planet.”

As part of Anheuser-Busch’s “Let’s Grab A Beer” initiative, Anheuser-Busch’s donation will go directly towards educational resources to help the industry implement sustainable business practices, such as renewable electricity, energy efficiency improvement and product cooling.

“Private industry must be a major ally in the fight to address the climate crisis if we are going to make meaningful progress as a nation,” said U.S. Congressman John Garamendi of California. “I’m pleased that Anheuser-Busch, whose Fairfield brewery in our Congressional District is one of our largest employers, is investing in technology to brew beer using renewable energy. Their commitment to brewing in a sustainable way is incredibly laudable and is the kind of thinking and innovation we need to address the challenges that climate change creates.”

Anheuser-Busch’s ongoing investments in renewable electricity includes the Anheuser-Busch Solar Farm and the 152-MW Budweiser Wind Farm at Thunder Ranch in Oklahoma with Enel Green Power. Through the two projects and more than 10 other renewable electricity installations at its flagship breweries, distributors and craft partner breweries across the country, Anheuser-Busch has added nearly 400 MW of renewable electricity capacity to the grid.

“The growth of solar is now driven by the sheer competitive pricing compared to other generation sources. It’s exciting to see companies like our valued customer, Anheuser-Busch, procuring low-cost, clean solar power to support their load on a national level with 100% renewable electricity,” said Michael Arndt, president and general manager of Recurrent Energy. “We are so pleased to help Anheuser-Busch meet their sustainability goals well ahead of their targeted timeline by developing and constructing the 222 MWac Anheuser-Busch Solar Farm in West Texas.”

News item from Anheuser-Busch

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Original Source: https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2021/06/solar-project-puts-anheuser-busch-brewing-at-100-renewable-electricity/