Community solar provider Ampion Renewable Energy is partnering with The Wendy’s Company to help Wendy’s restaurants source renewable energy. Nearly 100 company-operated restaurants and nearly 40 franchise restaurants in New York, Illinois and Massachusetts are now enrolled in Ampion+, a service that helps organizations reduce energy costs and secure renewable energy certificates (RECs) that substantiate the use of renewable energy and greenhouse gas emissions reductions.

The enrolled restaurants will source between 30 and 100% of their energy from solar without the need to install solar panels onsite. Wendy’s plans to increase the number of restaurants enrolled in community solar through Ampion as additional solar generation capacity comes online and more franchise restaurants enroll in the program.

“We are excited about the opportunity this partnership provides our company and franchise restaurant operators by making it easier and more accessible to source clean energy while ultimately realizing cost savings,” said Steven Derwoed, VP of global design and construction at Wendy’s. “We are advancing progress toward our emissions reduction goals through community solar participation and RECs. It’s a win-win for the Company and our franchisees.”

Last year, Wendy’s set near-term, science-based targets to reduce emissions by 47%, and emissions from franchisees by 47% per restaurant by 2030, both from a 2019 baseline. Sourcing renewable energy is a key focus area for Wendy’s in achieving these emissions reduction goals.

Through Ampion, Wendy’s locations have enrolled approximately 27.5 million kWh in community solar. Each kilowatt hour will be accounted for, tracked and assigned ownership to a specific restaurant location via RECs through Ampion+.

“As the need for reducing carbon emissions grows, community solar combined with RECs provides a solution for environmental sustainability in the corporate sector that is both achievable and affordable, while enabling companies to quantify and disclose their progress in a standardized manner,” said Nate Owen, CEO and founder of Ampion. “We’re seeing more large companies actively seeking sustainable solutions through community solar. This partnership with Wendy’s demonstrates that Ampion is able to support these organizations in reducing emissions and putting more renewable energy on the grid for local communities.”

RECs represent the environmental benefits associated with 1 MWh of renewable energy matched with electricity usage. Corporations buy RECs to claim responsibility for the clean energy generated and the corresponding environmental benefits in their ESG reports.

“Accounting and organizational constraints often prohibit enterprises from buying RECs needed to attain their ESG goals,” said Vihann Kong, senior executive director at Ampion. “Our innovative Ampion+ product addresses these roadblocks by combining community solar and RECs in one transaction. We’re proud to help The Wendy’s Company and franchisees lower their carbon emissions while saving on their bottom line.”

This partnership comes as community solar is continuing to trend upward. A recent report from Wood Mackenzie, estimates that cumulative community solar installations could more than double in the next five years. Earlier this year, Ampion surpassed 1 GW of community solar generation under management.

News item from Ampion