RBC signs solar-power agreement in a first for a Canadian bank

Source: Doug Alexander · BNNBLOOMBERG · | July 28, 2020

Signage outside of the Royal Bank of Canada headquarters in Toronto. Bloomberg/Cole Burston

Royal Bank of Canada will buy solar power from BluEarth Renewables Inc. under a renewable-energy contract that’s a first of its kind for a Canadian financial firm.

Canada’s largest bank and partner Bullfrog Power, a unit of Spark Power Group Inc., will each purchase 31,500 megawatt-hours a year — enough electricity for almost 2,600 homes — in an agreement that will support construction of two solar farms in southeast Alberta. They’ll be two of Canada’s largest solar farms when completed next April, generating 80,000 megawatt-hours annually, and are expected to inject $70 million into the province’s economy.

“We’re proud to be the first Canadian bank to sign a long-term renewable energy power-purchase agreement, demonstrating our commitment to clean, sustainable power,” Scott Foster, global head of corporate real estate for Toronto-based Royal Bank, said in a statement.