IRVING, Texas --7-Eleven has agreed to power 425 of its Texas stores with nothing but wind energy for 96 months.
The arrangement reached with Dallas-based TXU Energy, a residential and commercial energy provider, begins June 1, 2018, and is expected to reduce 7-Eleven’s carbon footprint by 6.7%.
The energy to power select 7-Eleven stores will be provided by wind farms in Texas. With more than 10,000 wind turbines in the state, Texas ranks first in the United States for both installed and under-construction wind capacity, and is home to four of the 10 largest wind farms in the nation.
"This agreement is beneficial for 7-Eleven on several fronts," said Ben Tison, 7-Eleven senior vice president of development. "Wind energy is a renewable, more cost-effective resource that will lower the carbon footprint of these stores as well as operating costs. Our customers, particularly Millennials and the younger Generation Z, care about sustainability and reducing environmental impacts, and they're paying attention to what companies are doing."
Last year, 7-Eleven outlined steps to reach measurable corporate social responsibility (CSR) goals to reduce its environmental footprint. The retailer's CSR mission has three focus areas: people, planet and products. Using 2015 as a baseline, 7-Eleven set goals to reduce its carbon footprint and increase community engagement in the U.S. and Canada by concentrating on energy, packaging and philanthropy.
The planet pillar included reducing the company’s energy footprint in stores and at its store support center in Irving, Texas, by 20% by 2025. 7-Eleven has already decreased electricity use in store operations by an estimated 21% over the past seven years through projects including installation of LED lighting, energy management systems and high-efficiency HVAC units.
TXU Energy will help 7-Eleven save even more by providing energy efficiency rebate incentives through its TXU GreenBackSM program. These incentives will allow 7-Eleven to fund and pilot new energy-efficient technologies that can be used throughout its portfolio of facilities.
"Our goal was to make sure that we were helping 7-Eleven reach its sustainability goals," said Gabe Castro, vice president of business for TXU Energy. "We were able to do that by helping them through the process to evaluate all of the options available, and then customizing a complete solution to help them reach those goals. We are proud to collaborate with 7-Eleven."
TXU Energy started as the Dallas Electric Lighting Company in 1882 and is now the leading retail electric provider in Texas. The energy company offers custom solutions for retail customers, including electricity plans, online tools to customize service and renewable energy options.
Irving, Texas-based 7-Eleven Inc. operates, franchises or licenses more than 61,000 stores in 17 countries, including 10,900 in North America.
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