Intel becomes biggest buyer of green energy in the U.S.

Intel looks to put its money where its mouth is as it strives to become the largest purchaser of green power in the United States. The chip maker said it will buy more than 1.3 billion kilowatt-hours a year of renewable energy certificates as part of an effort to reduce its impact on the environment.

Intel described these certificates as "the currency of the renewable energy market." The Environmental Protection Agency has said that Intel's lofty goal is "the equivalent environmental impact of taking more than 185,000 passenger cars off the road each year, or avoiding the amount of electricity needed to power more than 130,000 average American homes annually."

This purchase includes a portfolio of wind, solar, small hydro-electric, and biomass sources, added Intel. The company hopes its renewable purchase will spur additional development and demand for renewable energy.

This move puts Intel at the top of EPA’s latest Green Power Partners Top 25 list, and also at the No. 1 spot on EPA’s Fortune 500 Green Power Partners list.