RE100, a consortium of over 400 companies committed to using 100% renewable electricity, met 50% of their electricity needs from renewables in 2022, up from 49% in 2021, according to a recent report.

The RE100 annual disclosure report 2023 analyzes responses from 382 out of 403 member companies. Most companies reported data for the January-December 2022 period.

The group of companies, which consumed more electricity than France did in 2020, or about 1.7% of global power generation, said its annual footprint has grown by more than 100 terawatt hours (TWh) to 481 TWh, with 72 TWh growth driven by new membership mainly from Asia.

Source: RE100

However, the average target year for the group moved into the future, with the trend expected to continue as the initiative focuses its recruitment on challenging markets for renewable energy procurement. The average target year now is 2035 from 2031 previously.

The report said 25 companies revised their voluntary renewable energy consumption targets in 2022, with 19 companies making them more ambitious and six stepping back on commitments.

There is, however, a difference between what the companies claim and what RE100 recognizes. While the companies claimed 50% of their power needs were met with renewable energy, RE100 recognizes only 39%. This is because companies sometimes do not disclose where the electricity is used. For example, Microsoft and Alphabet disclosed renewable energy procurement and electricity consumption data aggregated at a regional level, making it impossible for RE100 to assess the credibility of their claims.

In 2022, power purchase agreements (PPAs) accounted for 31% of renewable energy procured by the companies, marking the first year-on-year decrease in PPA share. This decline was expected due to growing membership in Asia, where PPAs are less accessible.

Meanwhile, wind and solar energy were the main technologies that generated renewable energy for the group. But this varied on the region. In Asia, where procurement accounted for 21% of total procurement, hydropower represented nearly half of renewable energy purchases.

Source: RE100

Stumbling Blocks

High cost or limited supply of renewable energy was the most frequently cited barrier by 127 companies. The second most common hurdle was the lack of procurement options, cited by 112 companies.

Other major hurdles included regulatory barriers, credibility concerns, internal reasons, and lack of data.

While the U.S. has the 7th-largest number of RE100 companies reporting procurement barriers, it represented only 9% of RE100 companies operating there.

In contrast, 40% of companies in South Korea face barriers, with only 4% purchasing 100% renewable energy there. More companies report facing barriers to procurement in South Korea than in any other country or area.