Huhtamaki, the global provider of sustainable packaging solutions, has signed a 12-year Virtual Power Purchase Agreement (VPPA) with a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources, NextEra is the world’s largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and sun. The 42-megawatt agreement for renewable energy covers approximately 30% of Huhtamaki operations’ current electricity demands in the US and Mexico, where the company has 18 manufacturing units.
“We believe in protecting food, people and the planet. This agreement marks an important milestone on our journey towards delivering on our ambitious 2030 sustainability agenda. The agreement builds on the European VPPA agreement announced late in 2021, which covers 80% of our European electricity usage”, says Thomas Guest, deputy chief executive officer of Huhtamaki.
The renewable energy covered by the agreement will be sourced from a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources’ Inertia Wind Energy Center in the Electricity Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) North Zone, in Texas. The approximately 300-megawatt project is expected to be operational by the end of 2022 and to save more than 71,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually, equivalent to the average electricity usage of more than 12,000 homes in the US.
“We applaud Huhtamaki’s commitment to sustainability and are pleased to be able to support the company’s renewable energy goals. This will also create a significant economic stimulus for the local community, creating good jobs and additional tax revenue”, says Matt Handel, senior vice-president of Development for NextEra Energy Resources.
“We have already taken a series of pioneering steps on our journey to a sustainable future, with the intent to reach carbon-neutral production by 2030 while optimizing usage of resources, including energy, water, and waste. The VPPA enables us to make a significant leap forward in delivering on our ambitious sustainability agenda and Scope 2 emissions reduction target in line with our science-based targets. It also contributes to adding more green electricity into the U.S. energy mix”, says Thomasine Kamerling EVP Sustainability and Communications.
Huhtamaki’s science-based targets were validated and approved by the science-based targets initiative in 2021. The company is committed to limiting the global temperature rise to well below 2°C in its operations and value chain. It will reduce its electricity greenhouse gas emissions by 27.5% by 2030 and greenhouse gas emissions from its product end-of-life by 13.5% also by the same timeframe. To achieve these targets, the company has to address its Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. Currently, a large portion of Huhtamaki’s Scope 2 emissions relate to purchased electricity and can thus be addressed with further adoption of renewable electricity.
