Who Are America’s Top 5 Corporate Solar Users?

Led by tech and retail giants, American companies are installing record-levels of solar to power their operations and now account for 14% of all installed solar capacity in the United States. According to the Solar Means Business 2022 report by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the top five corporate solar users in America are Meta, Amazon, Apple, Walmart, and Microsoft.

Through June 2022, U.S. businesses have installed nearly 19 gigawatts (GW) of on-site and off-site solar capacity, which is double the 9.4 GW installed through 2019. This recent growth is due to the rapid expansion of off-site corporate solar procurement which now represents 55% of all commercial solar use.

“About half of all corporate solar has been installed in the last two and half years,” said SEIA president and CEO Abigail Ross Hopper. “Solar Means Business highlights the incredible flexibility of solar, whether it’s installed on a warehouse roof, on a carport or at an off-site facility, showing the various ways that companies are meeting their needs with clean, affordable energy. From data centers to industrial freezers, the most energy-intensive business operations are turning to solar as the most reliable and affordable way to power their infrastructure.”

Meta dramatically increased its installed solar capacity from 177 megawatts (MW) in early 2019 to 3.6 GW in 2022, and now has the largest corporate solar portfolio in the U.S. Target remains the top onsite corporate solar user, while Microsoft leapt into the top 10 by installing 479 MW of new capacity since 2019.

“We are proud of the work we have done to add new solar energy to the grid, bringing additional investment to rural areas and helping support the transition to renewables,” said Urvi Parekh, Head of Renewable Energy at Meta. “As we continue to fulfill our goal to support our global operations with 100% renewable energy, we look forward to working with others, including SEIA, to facilitate the energy transition and support a sustainable, affordable and reliable electricity grid.”