published on September 11, 2018 - 12:33 PM

Written by The Business Journal Staff

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Kaiser Permanente has finalized an agreement for a renewable energy purchase that will enable it to achieve its goal of being carbon neutral by 2020.

Kaiser Permanente’s power purchase agreement for 180 megawatts of clean energy — enough to power the health care system’s 39 hospitals — will enable the construction of utility-scale solar and wind farms, and one of the country’s largest battery energy storage systems. The agreement is part of a portfolio of renewable energy solutions and greenhouse gas reduction strategies.

Kaiser selected NextEra Energy Resources LLC for the agreement. The energy will come from a solar farm in Riverside County and a wind farm across the border in Arizona.

For its part, Kaiser Permanente Fresno has been installing more energy-efficient lighting and using drought-tolerant landscaping. They also have plans to add electric vehicle charging stations and solar panels to all their facilities in the Fresno area.

“Climate change is here. We are seeing the effects of it in devastating wildfires, hurricanes and droughts already impacting people’s lives,” said Kaiser Permanente CEO and chairman Bernard J. Tyson. “At Kaiser Permanente, we understand that one of the most effective ways to protect the health of the more than 68 million people in the communities we serve is by ensuring healthy environmental conditions.”

Tyson will be speaking at the opening plenary of the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco Thursday. Kaiser is the leading health care sponsor for the event.