New wind-energy label gains Deutsche Bank support

Deutsche Bank and a handful of other global firms pledged on Friday to get at least 25 percent of their energy from wind. Companies including Deutsche Bank, the news service Bloomberg and the medical technology firm BD announced they would sign on to a new label, WindMade, which will designate companies that use wind energy. The idea for the new label was first announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos last year. "We believe in leading by example and have increased our use of clean electricity from seven percent to 65 percent over the last four years," said Sabine Miltner, group sustainability officer for Deutsche Bank. "WindMade is an important step toward more market transparency and we are pleased to join this new partnership." Companies can use the label if they get a minimum of one quarter of their energy through wind power. That could come though "a company-owned wind power generation facility, a long-term power purchase agreement for wind power, or the purchase of high quality Renewable Energy Certificates approved by WindMade," a statement said. The WindMade label will state the company's portion of wind energy, and also specify whether it refers to global, regional or facility-level operations. "The supply side of the clean energy sector can clearly deliver, but now it is time to galvanize demand," said Curtis Ravenel, head of sustainability at Bloomberg. "Government has done their part, and it is now up to the corporate community to demonstrate leadership by committing to clean energy development. WindMade provides us with a roadmap for achieving this." The other companies that have vowed to join the label are Method, Better Place, Widex, Droga5, G24 Innovation, Engraw, RenewAire, TTTech, Vestas Wind Systems, and PwC DK, according to a press release.