Cargill, a US-based global food corporation, has announced that it is escalating its global renewable energy portfolio with 10 fresh projects. One of the facilities would be set up in the Davanagere region of Karnataka, India, as a joint venture with CleanMax.
Cargill’s Davanagere facility has initiated a joint venture with CleanMax to supply 70-80 percent of its electricity needs through wind and solar hybrid power park in Karnataka. It added that the corporation would eradicate 29,865 metric tonnes of CO2 emissions per year.
Globally, these new projects, most of which will be operational in 2021, would ease CO2 emissions by 350,000 metric tonnes in a year, Cargill said in a press release.
“This is in addition to Cargill’s commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in its global supply chains by 30 percent per tonne of product by 2030, also measured against a 2017 baseline. Both climate change commitments are aligned with the Paris Agreement and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals,” it said.
Cargill has a climate commitment to decrease 10 percent of its overall greenhouse gas emissions from its operations by 2025, against a 2017 baseline. It presently uses 15 different renewable energy sources globally, comprising wind and solar power.
“To help us meet our climate commitments, we are focused on operating more efficiently, pursuing emissions-reducing technology and investing in renewable energy to power our operations or offset our emissions,” said Jill Kolling, vice-president of Sustainability at Cargill.
Upon accomplishment, the 10 new renewable projects positioned in the regions of North and South America, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Asia together are projected to reduce CO2 emissions by around 350,000 metric tons a year, which is equivalent to providing electricity for more than 40,065 homes per year.
According to Cargill, these projects would also deliver economic benefits to their respective regions and states in the form of jobs, landowners and tax payments, and money spent in local communities to help enhance schools, roads, and other essential services.
