7-Eleven to Power Stores With Wind Energy

IRVING, Texas — 7-Eleven Inc. has signed an agreement with TXU Energy to purchase 100-percent Texas wind energy for all its Texas convenience stores located in competitive energy markets.

Starting June 1, 2018, the 8-year wind energy agreement will impact 425 stores and is expected to reduce the c-store operator's footprint by 6.7 percent while providing significant operating expense savings, reported NBC 12.

The energy to power 7-Eleven stores will be provided by Texas wind farms. With more than 10,000 wind turbines in the state, Texas ranks first in the United States for both installed and under-construction wind capacity, and is home to four of the top 10 largest wind farms in the nation, according to the news outlet.

"This agreement is beneficial for 7-Eleven on several fronts," said Ben Tison, 7-Eleven senior vice president of development. "Wind energy is a renewable, more cost-effective resource that will lower the carbon footprint of these stores as well as operating costs. Our customers, particularly millennials and the younger Generation Z, care about sustainability and reducing environmental impacts, and they're paying attention to what companies are doing."  

In 2016, 7-Eleven outlined steps to reach measurable corporate social responsibility (CSR) goals to reduce its environmental footprint. The convenience store retailer's CSR mission consists of three focus areas: planet, products and people. 7-Eleven will use 2015 as a baseline as it reduces its carbon footprint and increases community engagement in the United States and Canada by concentrating on energy, packaging and philanthropy, as CSNews Online previously reported.

7-Eleven’s "pillar planet" includes reducing its energy footprint in stores and at its store support center in Irving by 20 percent by 2025. The retailer has already decreased electricity use in store operations by an estimated 21 percent over the past seven years through projects including installation of LED lighting, energy management systems and high-efficiency HVAC units.

TXU Energy will additionally provide 7-Eleven with energy efficient rebate incentives through its TXU GreenBack program for greater savings. These incentives will allow 7-Eleven to fund and pilot new energy efficient technologies that can be used throughout its portfolio of facilities.

"Our goal was to make sure that we were helping 7-Eleven reach its sustainability goals," said Gabe Castro, vice president of business for TXU Energy. "We were able to do that by helping them through the process to evaluate all of the options available, and then customizing a complete solution to help them reach those goals. We are proud to collaborate with 7-Eleven."

TXU Energy Retail Co. is an electricity provider based in Dallas.

Irving-based 7-Eleven operates, franchises and/or licenses more than 60,000 stores in 17 countries, including 10,700 in North America.