Sterling Planet
Sterling Planet, Inc. is a United States company that provides renewable energy, carbon offsets and other environmental attributes to residential and business customers. The U.S. Department Of Energy named Sterling Planet Renewable Energy Marketer of the Year in 2007 and 2008.
Founded |
2000 |
|---|---|
Headquarters |
Norcross, GA |
Focus |
Sustainability, Environment, Energy |
Markets |
Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy, Carbon Offsets |
Clients |
Utilities, Corporations, Colleges, Organizations, Individuals |
Website |
www.sterlingplanet.com |
History and Overview
Sterling Planet, Inc. was founded in 2000 in the Atlanta, GA, metropolitan area.
Since its inception, Sterling Planet has partnered with utilities and contracted directly with residential and business customers to provide clean, green, carbon-free energy from renewable sources, such as wind power, low-impact hydropower, solar power, and bioenergy. The company introduced renewable energy certificates to the national retail market in 2001 and White Tags® energy efficiency certificates in 2006. The company is also active in global carbon markets, offering verified carbon offsets.
Sterling Planet serves a broad client base. As of April 2009, the company’s clients included 1,641 companies, 108 utilities, 58 colleges, 211 government agencies and thousands of individuals. Thirteen of the nation’s leading 25 renewable energy purchasers, including the top two, are customers of Sterling Planet.
Sterling Planet also has a clean energy project development subsidiary. Sterling Energy Assets, Inc. develops and acquires renewable power generating facilities. Currently, there are more than 100 megawatts of new renewable energy generating capacity in various stages of development.
Environmental Impact
Renewable energy certificates from Sterling Planet serve to offset purchasers’ use of conventional electricity from nonrenewable energy sources such as fossil fuels. Similarly, the company’s carbon offsets counterbalance carbon dioxide emissions from transportation and other non-electric energy uses. According to Sterling Planet, as of April 2009 sales of renewable energy have avoided release of 32 billion pounds of carbon dioxide and represent enough electricity to power 2.2 million homes for a year.
Certification
Sterling Planet’s renewable energy certificates carry Green-e Energy certification. The company’s carbon offsets from a U.S.-based methane recovery project carry certification from Green-e Climate. Other affiliations include the Voluntary Carbon Standard APX Registry, CDM Gold Standard APX Registry, CCAR - Climate Action Reserve, American Carbon Registry (founding member), U.S. EPA Climate Leaders, the Chicago Climate Exchange, APX North American Renewables Registry and the U.S. Green Building Council. Early in 2009, Sterling Planet became one of the first carbon offset providers with certified GHG (greenhouse gas) verification personnel.