Brookfield Renewable to Power JPMorgan Chase’s NY Portfolio

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JPMorgan Chase and Brookfield Renewable have entered a five-year energy agreement through which the latter supplies with clean energy more than 500 JPMorgan Chase locations in New York State. The number represents about 90 percent of the bank’s operations statewide.

Brookfield Renewable, which together with its institutional partners owns and operates one of the world’s largest publicly traded renewable power platforms, will provide service from its hydroelectric facilities. The energy delivered will be tracked in real-time and will help JPMorgan Chase to get closer to its commitment to sustainability it has announced in 2017—then, the banking institution stated that it works toward sourcing renewable energy for 100 percent of its global power needs starting in 2020. The primary purpose of the deal is to transition to a low-carbon economy over time, while cost savings that come with this agreement play a secondary role. 

Brookfield Renewable’s supply of hydropower in New York is a portion of a portfolio comprising more than 900 megawatts of generating capacity, which also includes wind and solar facilities. Overall, the company has a power generation portfolio that amounts to 7,900 megawatts of hydro capacity, 4,700 megawatts of wind capacity and 2,600 megawatts of solar. In addition, the company has 800 megawatts of distributed generation portfolio and 2,700 megawatts of battery storage facilities.  

A greater good

Brookfield’s power mix not only aids JPMorgan Chase to achieve its renewable energy target but is also instrumental in the state’s goal of obtaining 70 percent of its electricity needs from emission-free resources by 2030, as mandated under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act.  

The partnership was well received by the Real Estate Board of New York, which issued a supportive statement on the matter. “New York’s real estate industry is committed to significantly reducing carbon emissions in the fight against climate change, and access to renewable energy sources, especially Downstate, is the key to reaching our environmental goals,” said REBNY president James Whelan.

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In addition to the partnership with Brookfield Renewable, earlier this month, JPMorgan Chase adopted the Paris-aligned financing commitment. Specifically, JPMorgan Chase will establish intermediate emission targets for 2030 for its financing portfolio and report the results in 2021. The firm will focus on the oil and gas, electric power and automotive manufacturing sectors and set targets on a sector-by-sector basis.

In their next climate report, the financing institution will include details on further actions it intends to take to support companies in advancing the goals of the Paris accord, including GHG emissions and expanding investment in low- and zero-carbon energy sources and technologies.