Being a Sustainable Business Starts with Clean Energy

Achieving and growing a successful business is challenging, but making that business sustainable can be easy with the help of Orange County Power Authority (OCPA), one of the 2024 Leaders in Sustainability spotlighted in the Orange County Business Journal.

OCPA is part of the growing Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) movement in California that provides electricity users in local communities with the choice to embrace a cleaner energy future. OCPA procures renewable energy on behalf of its commercial customers, who have the choice of three competitively priced renewable energy plans. From OCPA’s Basic Choice plan with 44% renewable energy that costs 3% less than Southern California Edison’s equivalent generation rate, to the 100% Renewable Choice plan for just 1.5 cents more per kWh, businesses that choose OCPA are making a measurable impact on their ESG goals with one simple action.  

OCPA currently serves over 175,000 business and residential customers in the cities of Buena Park, Fullerton, and Irvine with renewable energy from sources including solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal. In two short years, OCPA has reduced over 2 billion lbs. of CO₂ emissions through renewable energy procurement on behalf of its customers – the equivalent of removing over 221,000 gas-powered vehicles off the road!

In 2023, OCPA purchased an aggregate portfolio of approximately 86% renewable energy, with approximately 81% coming from carbon-free resources. Recognized by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory as the #2 CCA in the country for green power sales, and well-exceeding mandatory state requirements for the purchase of renewable energy, OCPA is one of the cleanest community choice energy providers in California.

Since OCPA and other community energy providers focus on renewable energy, they attract green technology firms, energy startups, and other industries that are aligned with corporate sustainability goals to their cities. These businesses bring with them not only innovation but also high-paying jobs, tax revenues, and local investment.

California’s 25 CCAs have supported 30,000 construction jobs through clean energy power purchase agreements and saved customers $760 million compared to investor-owned utilities.

What’s more, leaders in the extensive CCA network will be gathering right here in Orange County for their annual conference in April 2025, bringing with them close to 800 visitors contributing tourism and county investment.

Sustainability is not the finish line, it is a way of being. More clean energy purchased by OCPA means a healthier and higher quality of life, and a stronger and cleaner economy.

That just makes good business sense.

If you are a business based in Buena Park, Fullerton, or Irvine and want to know more about how OCPA can help you become a net-zero carbon emission company, call OCPA at 949-767-8715 or info@ocpower.org.

About Orange County Power Authority

The Orange County Power Authority is a not-for-profit public agency that offers clean power at competitive rates, significantly reducing energy-related greenhouse emissions and enabling reinvestment in local energy programs. To learn more, visit www.ocpower.org.