In the midst of a more general transformation, the owners of the Empire State Building have spent the last couple of years optimizing this symbol of 80-year-old architecture, primarily through a series of efficiency improvements and the use of other energy sources.
On Thursday, the building's guards announced a new milestone: It has become the largest commercial buyer of renewable energy in the state.
In a two-year contract with Green Mountain Energy, a renewable energy and carbon offset retailer recently acquired by NRG Energy of New Jersey, the Empire State Building will purchase 55 million kilowatt-hours in renewable energy certificates annually, enough to cover its annual electricity consumption.
Certificates are obtained through NRG's wind energy facilities.
In a statement, Anthony E. Malkin, the president of Malkin Holdings, which oversees the Empire State Building, suggested that the move, along with green efforts, "gives us a competitive advantage in attracting tenants with better credit and getting better rents."
Advertising large-scale purchases of renewable energy certificates, or RECs, has become increasingly common among companies and institutions looking to enhance their green reputation.
The Environmental Protection Agency, which "supports the hiring of the green energy organization" through its Green Power Partnership Program, is a driver along these lines. The 2010 Green Power Leadership Awards program recognizes a number of businesses and organizations – including the Indianapolis Zoo, which now covers 100 percent of their electricity needs (14 million kilowatt-hours a year) through REC purchases.
Some skeptics warn that this is only true if certificates help create new clean energy facilities, rather than simply offering added benefit to existing ones.
It is unclear how the proceeds from the purchase of carbon certificates made by the Empire State Building will be used. Other than that, it's a remarkable achievement for Manhattan's most famous landmark. The purchase, according to Thursday's announcement, is "more than double the amount of renewable energy that any other commercial customer in New York is buying."
Authors: Val
