IKEA has already been investing handsomely in renewable energy sector as it is currently the owner of wind farms in European nations and has 342,000 solar panels on its stores, warehouses and factories, which collectively generate 27 percent of the energy consumed by the group. The company isn’t just happy with its current environmental statistics and has announced plans to become self-sufficient in terms of energy by the end of this decade.
The Swedish group announced that it will also limit sales by 2016 to energy efficient products including induction cookers and LED lighting. Under the plan IKEA will invest around $2 billion in solar and wind power by 2015, which will help it produce about 70 percent of its total electricity requirements. Also the group is now planning to grow more trees than it uses to produce products such as beds and cupboards. Presently the group doesn’t take any wood from natural tropical forests and only makes use of wood from sources such as those certified by non-profit Forest Stewardship Council.
The announcement is being backed by several environmental groups such as WWF and Greenpeace. Inspired by the Swedish brand, several other companies have escalated their green efforts with Intel Corp and Wal-Mart setting similar goals to conserve energy and generate it using renewable sources whenever possible.
Via: Reuters