CSR
Corporate Social Responsibility at Intel®
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Does Intel's solar announcement really matter?

Intel_Blog_Admin
Employee
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Does today's announcement about increasing our solar capacity by nearly 25 times really matter?

If every company in the world, over the next five years, did as much to offset their energy consumption as Intel does between solar investments and RECs (renewable energy credits), it would matter a "ton". But looking at the total energy consumption of America, or even Arizona or New Mexico, no, the investment will not materially drive the total energy demands of carbon-based power generation.

So why do we do it? Because influencing the short-term consumption is NOT the metric that matters; what matters is the first (longer-term) perspective of being a responsible global leader. Intel was the company that stated it would be investing seven billion dollars in the U.S. over the next few years at a time that most every other company was retrenching. Intel has been the company that has repeatedly driven for longer term investments in education, infrastructure, and basic (fundamental) R&D that is the very basis of the next generation of technological advances. We all know that companies need to reduce expenses during recessions. We do that too, but we don't stop our longer term R&D commitments.

So, yes, this investment and decision matters. We want companies to emulate our success by taking the long view. We want companies to invest in carbon reduction efforts. We want to lead by example, to lead by our industry, and to create proof points of success for those who take this path.

Learn more about our environmental commitment by visiting our environment website.