Stop & Shop Using 100 Percent Renewable Energy at First Maine Store

QUINCY, Mass. -- The Stop & Shop Supermarket Co. said yesterday that it has purchased Sterling Planet's Green-e certified renewable energy to match 100 percent of its electricity use at its first Maine store, which opened last month in Kennebunk.

Norcross, Ga.-based Sterling Planet, the leading U.S. retail provider of solar, wind, and other clean, renewable energy through direct sales and electric utility partnerships, will supply 2,700,000 kilowatt-hours of renewable energy annually for the store. The purchase will enable Stop & Shop to avoid almost 4,000,000 pounds of carbon dioxide pollution in the coming year.

"By choosing clean, renewable energy, Stop & Shop is demonstrating that it's possible to consume this energy while supporting clean energy technologies and domestic electricity, offsetting fossil fuel demand, and being a good corporate citizen," said Paul Grenier, manager of energy budgeting and procurement for the Ahold banner, in a statement.

The retailer's purchase is in the form of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), which are also called green certificates, green tags, or tradable renewable certificates. RECs represent the environmental attributes of the power produced from wind, solar, and other renewable energy projects, and are sold separately from commodity electricity. Customers can buy RECs regardless of whether they have access to green power through their local utility or a competitive electricity marketer, and they can purchase green certificates without having to switch electricity suppliers.

"Our Kennebunk store was designed to be energy-efficient," explained Stop &Shop s.v.p. for construction Steve Krupski. "We're committed to investments which permit us to be community minded and help to control our bottom line in today's world of high energy costs."

Stop & Shop employs over 59,000 associates and operates 389 stores in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, and Maine.

Sterling Planet was the first company to offer RECs to every U.S. home and business as a way to support sustainable energy. Today the company has 564 large commercial and industrial clients nationwide, among them 44 utility partners, 67 government clients, and 31 universities.
X
This ad will auto-close in 10 seconds