Bayer inks Renewable-Battery Storage PPA with Cat Creek Energy in Idaho

May 10, 2023
Under the deal, CCE will construct multiple variable renewable energy resources plus energy storage facilities in Idaho, generating a total of 1.4 terawatt hours (TWh) per year

German pharmaceutical giant Bayer has signed a long-term structured renewable energy credit purchase agreement with Idaho-based renewable energy firm Cat Creek Energy (CCE).

According to Bayer, this agreement will satisfy 40 percent of its global and 60 percent of its U.S.-purchased electricity demand from renewable sources.

Under the deal, CCE will construct multiple variable renewable energy resources plus energy storage facilities in Idaho, generating a total of 1.4 terawatt hours (tWh) of clean electricity per year. This amount of energy is equivalent to the energy consumption of 150,000 households.

The agreement will also enable Bayer to claim offsets on annual CO2 emissions by 370,000 tons, roughly equivalent to the emissions of 270,000 mid-sized cars or the amount that 31.7 million trees can bind annually.

“As an innovation-driven company, Bayer recognizes the need to introduce renewable energy solutions that are healthier for the planet and healthier for humans,” said Matthias Berninger, EVP of Public Affairs, Science, Sustainability and HSE at Bayer. “This project with Cat Creek Energy is exciting because it catapults our energy goal target fulfilments while also supporting Idaho, a state many of our employees call home.”

Bayer’s P4 unit operates phosphate and phosphorous mining close to Soda Springs, Idaho.

Under many clean power purchase agreements, the customer does not actually receive the renewable energy directly but helps invest in the project’s deployment onto the main grid.

The renewable energy projects will contribute to Idaho’s conversion move towards dependable, sustainable energy by 2045. The projects are expected to bring in more than $1.5 billion worth of new electrical infrastructure, generate hundreds of jobs, and provide millions of dollars in annual tax revenues for counties and schools where they are situated.

Construction of these projects is planned to commence in the third quarter of this year.

CCE is developing large volume long duration storage through its Pumped Storage Hydro project. Under the deal with Bayer, CCE will install battery storage with a nameplate capacity of 160 MW to enhance the reliability and stability of the regional transmission grid.

Bayer says it is dedicated to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions throughout its entire value chain, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement’s objective to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2050. It also aims to achieve climate neutrality in its operations by 2030.

One of Bayer’s key strategies to meet its reduction targets is to source 100 percent sustainable renewable electricity by 2030, a target that has been approved by the Science Based Targets initiative.

In the U.S., Bayer’s key focuses are on pharmaceuticals and agriculture. The company also has American operations in California, Hawaii, Texas, Arizona and Puerto Rico.

About the Author

EnergyTech Staff

Rod Walton is senior editor for EnergyTech.com. He has spent 14 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist.

Walton formerly was energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World. Later, he spent six years covering the electricity power sector for Pennwell and Clarion Events. He joined Endeavor and EnergyTech in November 2021.

He can be reached at [email protected]

EnergyTech is focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids.

Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.