NEW YORK—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) named Citigroup a 2011 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year. Citi is the only bank to have received the prestigious award this year, which honors organizations that have made outstanding contributions to protecting the environment through energy efficiency.
“Citi’s robust energy management program is a national model, demonstrating how to fight climate change through energy efficiency,” said Elizabeth Craig, Acting Director of EPA’s Office of Atmospheric Programs. “Effective energy management not only helps the bottom line, but it also is our most cost-effective climate strategy.”
Partner of the Year award winners are selected annually from more than 17,000 organizations that participate in the ENERGY STAR Program. The EPA will officially honor the 2011 winners at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 12th.
“ENERGY STAR and banking go hand in hand,” said Don Callahan, Citi’s Chief Administrative Officer and Chief Operations & Technology Officer. “We believe we have a responsibility to do what we can to reduce our environmental footprint. The EPA recognizes that companies in any industry should play a role, and that companies of Citi’s size can be leaders, significantly impacting climate change through innovative programs and employee engagement.”
Highlights of Citi’s ENERGY STAR Program include:
- Reduced energy consumption by 7.3% and greenhouse gas emissions by 6.3% globally from 2009 levels across a real estate portfolio of 78 million square feet.
- Earned the ENERGY STAR for 12 facilities in 2010, for a total of 67 facilities since 2008.
- Reduced US energy consumption 8.5% from 2009 levels on continuing operations – a savings of over 110 gigawatt hours (enough energy to power over 10,000 US homes for a year)
- Annual energy savings globally in excess of $10 million through operational efficiencies
Citi was one of the first global financial services companies to publicly join the fight to slow climate change and reduce energy dependence. The company began measuring the environmental impact of its buildings and released its first environmental footprint reduction goal in 2006 (a 10% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by year-end 2011).
In 2010, Citi Realty Services expanded on the company’s existing goal by creating additional targets for 2015, which include: reducing GHG emissions from buildings 25%, reducing waste 40%, reducing water use 15% and having 15% of its real estate portfolio Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design-certified by the US Green Building Council.
This award is the latest in a series of awards and recognition for Citi’s green efforts. Within the past two years, Citi has also been recognized by Newsweek, Bank Technology News, IDG’s Computerworld and others.