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But perhaps one of the most noteworthy brights spots of the past year, according to an annual report released Tuesday by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), was the growing demand for wind energy from major corporations. High-tech firms such as Google Energy, Facebook and Amazon Web Services, as well as more traditional companies such as Procter & Gamble, General Motors, Walmart and Dow Chemical, have signed contracts to purchase increasing amounts of wind energy in coming years.

Corporations and other non-utility customers — including some municipalities and universities  — accounted for more than half of the wind power capacity sold through so-called power purchase agreements in 2015, according to the AWEA. The group said that corporate and other non-utility buyers have signed contracts for more than 4,500 megawatts of wind power capacity, or enough to power the equivalent of about 1.2 million American homes.

Why does that matter?

[These states are setting wind energy records – and suing over Obama’s climate plans]

• Wind energy is seeing a global, not just a domestic boom. While the United States generated more electricity from wind than in any previous year during 2015, China outpaced every other nation in the amount of new wind energy capacity.  China, the United States, Germany, Brazil and India combined to produce more than 80 percent of all new wind capacity installations in 2015, according to the AWEA………https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/04/12/why-companies-like-google-and-walmart-are-buying-so-much-wind-power/