DTE Energy (DTE) and the city of Southfield (Southfield) today (Aug 7) announced Southfield's enrollment in MIGreenPower, DTE's voluntary renewable energy program. Southfield is the first municipality in Oakland Country to enroll in MIGreenPower, which enables any DTE Electric customer to attribute an even greater percentage of their electricity use to Michigan-made wind and solar projects beyond the 15% DTE already provides. The enrollment, which includes all eligible city of Southfield buildings, is equivalent to taking more than 1,500 gasoline-powered cars off the road for a year.1 Other southeast Michigan municipalities enrolled in the program include Scio Township, the City of Almont and the Village of Deckerville
"The city of Southfield discovered DTE's MIGreenPower program while reviewing options for adding a large solar installation in our community," said Southfield Mayor Dr. Ken Siver. "After further researching the program, the city determined that enrolling in MIGreenPower will provide Southfield with all the benefits of renewable energy without the added responsibility of installing and maintaining our own solar arrays."
MIGreenPower is among the largest voluntary renewable energy programs in the U.S., with more than 1,300 businesses and 90,000 residential customers enrolled. On an annual basis, MIGreenPower customers have enrolled four million megawatt hours of clean energy in the program, which has the environmental benefit equivalent to avoiding more than three million tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually or the greenhouse gas emissions from more than 630,000 gasoline-powered passenger cars.1
"We are excited to welcome the city of Southfield to the MIGreenPower program, and to recognize it as the first municipality in Oakland County to join," said Brian Calka, vice president of Renewable Energy for DTE. "We appreciate the opportunity to help the city meet its environmental goals, easily and affordably. By attributing more of its electricity use to DTE's wind and solar projects, Southfield will help bring additional clean energy to the grid, creating a more sustainable future for the city and the state of Michigan as a whole."
MIGreenPower participation is accelerating the development of new wind and solar projects in Michigan. By 2026, DTE will add more than 1,000 megawatts of new clean energy projects to meet program demand. The company is committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and recently reached a settlement agreement with 21 Michigan organizations for its CleanVision Integrated Resource Plan, which has now also been approved by the Michigan Public Service Commission. The plan includes increasing investment in solar and wind energy to add more than 15,000 megawatts of new renewable energy projects over the next two decades, accelerating the retirement of coal plants and investing in the development of new energy storage - all reinforcing the company's commitment to cleaner energy.
About DTE Energy
DTE Energy (NYSE: DTE) is a Detroit-based diversified energy company involved in the development and management of energy-related businesses and services nationwide. Its operating units include an electric company serving 2.3 million customers in Southeast Michigan and a natural gas company serving 1.3 million customers in Michigan. The DTE portfolio includes energy businesses focused on power and industrial projects, renewable natural gas, and energy marketing and trading. Through our commitment to cleaner energy, DTE Electric plans to reduce CO2 emissions by 90% and DTE Gas will plan to reduce methane emissions by more than 80% by 2040 to produce cleaner energy while keeping it safe, reliable and affordable. DTE Electric and Gas aspire to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. DTE is committed to serving with its energy through volunteerism, education and employment initiatives, philanthropy and economic progress. Information about DTE is available at dteenergy.com, empoweringmichigan.com, twitter.com/dte_energy and facebook.com.
About the city of Southfield
The city of Southfield is one of the premier business and residential addresses in Michigan. Located in Oakland County, Southfield is home to more than 76,000 residents and over 100 "Fortune 500" companies. With a daytime population nearing 175,000, over 27 million square feet of office space and more than seven million square feet of retail and industrial space-Southfield is truly Michigan's undisputed business center. Residents and businesses alike come to Southfield for its central location, excellent city services and easy access to all of southeastern Michigan.
For further information, members of the media may contact:
Cindy Hecht, DTE Energy, 313.235.5555
City of Southfield Community Relations at 248.796.5130 or visit www.cityofsouthfield.com.
1 Avoided emissions and equivalencies are based on the Environmental Protection Agency equivalencies calculator at epa.gov/energy/greenhouse-gas-equivalencies-calculator
