Iron Mountain will offer CO2 reporting services to its data center customers. Manuel Geissinger

Data center energy load can represent a significant percentage of an organization’s overall environmental footprint. For clients focused on reducing that impact, Green Power Pass can help demonstrate their commitment to carbon, and emission reduction goals in line with initiatives such as RE100, Science Based Carbon Targets, and CDP reporting. Prior, the only option available would be third-party contracting processes to purchase offsets or renewable energy credits. In keeping with Iron Mountain’s commitment to offering 100% renewable energy in its data center division, early adopter customers through June 30, 2019, can receive these credits free of charge.

“Iron Mountain’s Green Power Pass is an exciting breakthrough for the data center industry and a wonderful demonstration of the power of collaboration between industry and NGOs,” said Miranda Ballentine, CEO of Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance. “By being the first product to come to market that uses the Future of Internet Power’s Requirements for Supplier-Procured Renewable Energy, Iron Mountain is showing the way for data center customers to easily access the benefits of green electricity. Now all colocation and cloud customers of any size can be part of the movement to increase demand and help realize the goal of an internet powered by 100% renewable energy.”

GPP reporting is standardized, delivering an annual certification, validating that 100% of the power used at Iron Mountain is from qualifying renewable resources. Additionally, customers receive a detailed report on their power consumption and full documentation on the amount, source, and chain-of-custody of the wind, solar, or other renewable electricity associated with that Iron Mountain facility.

“Green Power Pass is a significant step in the renewable energy journey for Iron Mountain, our data center customers, and the industry,” said Kevin Hagen, VP of environmental, social, & governance strategy, Iron Mountain. “Our first step was to find cost-effective renewable energy solutions for our business. With GPP, we can now pass through those benefits to our customers and finally, by building GPP on a new collaborative industry protocol, we’re showing that all data center providers can deliver this kind of solution. It’s a sustainable business shift that is good for our customers, our business, our industry, and the environment.”

Early adopters include Akamai, Arizona State University, and WeWork. These organizations are the first customers to adopt Green Power Pass and delivered valuable feedback as Iron Mountain developed the solution.

“Akamai believes that operating our business with a small environmental footprint is fundamental to unlocking the potential of the internet and an essential value for our customers and the communities in which we operate,” said Robert Blumofe, executive VP of the Enterprise Division at Akamai. “We strive to incorporate our sustainability principles into our business relationships by seeking similar commitments from our major suppliers. We are pleased to be a launch partner of Iron Mountain’s Green Power Pass, allowing us to deliver services to our customers in a sustainable and socially responsible way through 100% renewable power.”

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Iron Mountain’s new virtual power purchase agreement supports commitment to aggressive carbon reduction goals in line with the Paris Climate Accord.

With this agreement, coupled with other recent green power purchases, Iron Mountain expects to exceed 75% global renewable electricity usage in 2018, and move the company closer to its goal of 100% renewable power by 2050.

Iron Mountain worked with Schneider Electric Energy & Sustainability Services to identify and evaluate projects and arrange the deal.

“Renewable energy has become a key strategic component in how we manage electricity usage throughout our global real estate portfolio,” said Kevin Hagen, Vice President of Environmental Social and Governance Strategy, Iron Mountain. “This agreement with NextEra Energy Resources is a critical next step towards achieving our goals for utilizing renewable energy for 100% of our global portfolio.”

NextEra Energy Resources is the world’s largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and the sun. The company currently operates more than 14,000 MW of wind power and is continually expanding its renewable energy portfolio.

What is especially exciting is that, with this agreement and the achievement of other milestones, 100% of our data center business now operates on renewable electricity,” added Hagen. “When you consider the sheer amount of electricity required to power our entire operational portfolio, it’s truly remarkable to hit these goals in a ‘business-positive’ manner that leverages renewable energy to help us reduce utility expenses, stabilize rates and reduce the business risks associated with fossil fuels.”

NextEra Energy Resources will build, own, and operate the Pretty Prairie project, with Iron Mountain purchasing a portion of the electricity it generates.

When completed, Iron Mountain’s portion of the project will generate enough clean, renewable electricity to power the equivalent of 56,000 U.S. homes and will reduce fossil fuel emissions equivalent to removing more than 101,000 cars from the road annually.

“We are excited to partner with Iron Mountain to help the company achieve its next milestone along its renewable energy journey,” said John Di Donato, Vice President of Development for NextEra Energy Resources.  “The Pretty Prairie Wind project will not only help advance Iron Mountain’s renewable energy goals, it will help drive the local economy forward, creating good jobs, millions of dollars in landowner payments, and additional revenue for the community to enhance roads, schools, and other essential services.”

The project should create more than 250 jobs during construction, which typically lasts between six and nine months. Once operational, by the end of 2019, Pretty Prairie Wind is expected create between 15-20 full-time jobs.

Over its first 30 years in operation, the project will generate an estimated $50 million in payments to local landowners, as well as millions of dollars in additional tax revenue to the local community.

Iron Mountain is committed to environmental responsibility. Following the execution of its first North American PPA in 2016, it has expanded its focus to pursue global renewable energy opportunities across its operational and real estate portfolio.
The company recently announced that its operations in Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom have reached the goal of 100% renewable energy usage. Earlier this year, the company joined the RE100, formally committing to achieve 100% renewable power by 2050.

Additionally, Iron Mountain also agreed to set aggressive science-based targets for carbon reduction in alignment with the objectives of the Paris Climate Accord, and is active in several organizations, including BSR’s Future of Internet Power, the Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance and RMI’s Business Renewables Center.

“This deal is further proof that scaling up renewable energy is achievable and cost-effective for global companies of all sizes,” said Marty Spitzer, Senior Director of Renewable Energy at World Wildlife Fund. “With the help of the Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance, buyers like Iron Mountain have switched into high gear on their journey toward 100% renewable energy and are reducing emissions in line with the urgency of the climate challenge.”

This latest power purchase agreement further demonstrates the ability to use business as a solution to climate challenges and benefit stakeholders; of note, the 75% use mark includes the entirety of Iron Mountain’s data center operations.

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This milestone represents a significant achievement for the company following its joining of the RE100 initiative earlier this year in which Iron Mountain committed to using renewable energy sources for 100% of its worldwide electricity.

This milestone represents a significant achievement for the company following its joining of the RE100 initiative earlier this year in which Iron Mountain committed to using renewable energy sources for 100% of its worldwide electricity. In doing so, the company pledged to follow a rigorous standard for green power purchasing and achieving aggressive interim milestones on the way to a complete conversion by 2050.

“As a global organization, we recognize that continued dependence on fossil fuels for electricity generation and usage has a negative effect on our worldwide carbon footprint,” said Kevin Hagen, vice president, Environmental Social and Governance Strategy, Iron Mountain. “We also recognize that by reducing or eliminating our dependence on that kind of energy we can run our business better, with more predictable costs for energy. Our global commitment to social and environmental responsibility encourages and enables us to look for ways to deliver a positive impact for our communities, for the environment and for our bottom line. We look forward to expanding our RE100 commitment to other countries and regions, working with others to help create a greener, more equitable, cost-effective grid for everyone.”

Like other global organizations, the primary source of electricity for Iron Mountain has been coal and natural gas, the biggest single factor driving the company’s greenhouse gas (GHG) footprint. In 2016, electricity use alone made up almost half of Iron Mountain’s GHG emissions. Data centers – like the Slough (UK) and Amsterdam locations acquired earlier this year – drive much of that, as they require continuous power to maintain the operation of servers and other technology and support.

The Slough location alone uses as much energy as all Iron Mountain’s UK records management facilities combined, while the Amsterdam facility doubled the company’s energy footprint in Europe. Removing that dependence on fossil fuel delivers both environmental benefits and better cost controls, as fossil fuel prices are often volatile, while the cost of using sustainable/renewable sources like wind and solar are predictable for organizations.

“With the growth in our footprint in the UK and Benelux, we knew there would be an increase in our electricity usage that would significantly affect our environmental impact,” said Steve Kowalkoski, senior vice president & general manager, UK and Ireland, Iron Mountain. “At the same time, we are aware we have an obligation to operate responsibly in the environments where we live and work, despite growth in our business. Looking across our operations, including the recent data center acquisitions, they saw an opportunity and solved this environmental challenge in a way that’s good for our business and our customers while also ensuring we are prepared for future business and footprint growth.”

Employing a combination of green power contracts, Iron Mountain was able to negotiate cost-effective wind and other renewable resources to supply all of the company’s electricity usage in these countries, including the data center operations in Slough and Amsterdam. These contracts in the UK and Europe further the company’s RE100 goals and build on last year’s achievement when wind and solar power totaled 30% of the company’s global electricity supply.

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