Dive Brief:

• Major retail and technology brands will procure 60 GW of renewable energy by 2025, according to a new report, and those companies will locate their operations and employees in states where the procurement is easiest.
• Iowa, Illinois, California and Texas are most effective at growing renewables and attracting new industry, according to the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) and the Information Technology Industry Council (ITIC).
• The firms recommend states deregulate power markets to enable customer choice of renewable energy, and competition from renewable producers.

Dive Insight:

As major corporations increase their focus on environmental stewardship, many are setting renewable energy goals that are driving where they locate businesses, build factories and expand operations. States which work with companies on energy issues can find their economies growing, according to a new report, The Corporate Clean Energy Procurement Index: State Leadership & Rankings.

In the report, RILA and ITIC rank states for the ease with which companies can procure solar, wind and other carbon-free energy sources. The top five states were Iowa, Illinois, New Jersey California and Texas. On the other side, Florida, Kentucky Alaska, Idaho, Wyoming and Alabama, were ranked in the bottom spots.

The report predicts retailers and technology companies will procure 60 GW of renewable energy by 2025. Almost half of the Fortune 500 companies are seeking to locate operations in states with clean energy production, the two firms say.

"Retailers are at the forefront of the growing trend to procure clean energy to power their operations," said Adam Siegela senior vice president at RILA. The index is designed to help businesses find states that can help them meet goals. 

Siegela said in a statement that state governments should "look hard at steps they can take to promote customer choice for renewable energy so that they can open the doors to new investments."

With job creation always a concern, the report recommends states deregulate power markets to allow companies to shop for their energy, authorize on-site generation like solar panels and battery arrays, and suggests states lower "artificial taxes that target their domestic clean energy producers."

The RILA-ITIC report mirrors the findings of another recent analysis, by  Advanced Energy Economy, which also found major brands are increasingly focused on clean energy. More than 70 of Fortune 100 companies have set renewable energy or sustainability targets, up from 60 just two years ago.

Almost two dozen Fortune 500 companies have embraced 100% green energy goals. Among them are retail giants Amazon and Walmart.