Brookfield Properties has set a new goal to use zero-emissions electricity at 70M SF of U.S. office buildings by 2026.
The investment giant in a press release issued Wednesday also set a benchmark of getting 65% of its U.S. properties, including all of its New York and Washington, D.C., portfolios, to zero emissions by 2024.
To meet the goal, Brookfield laid out energy transition plans for a number of its top markets. In New York, it plans to purchase electricity from the hydropower facilities in the state. In D.C., it said the energy will come from nuclear power plants in the PJM grid. In Los Angeles and Houston, Brookfield said it will construct new solar power plants to harness energy.
While real estate is responsible for 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions, more than half of the companies that control $1.2T of the industry's assets have no plan to reduce their footprint, an investigation by Bisnow uncovered in April.
At the end of last year, Brookfield had approximately $800B in assets under management across five continents, including office, retail, multifamily, logistics, hospitality, land and single-family housing. Of the 330M SF of real estate across its global portfolio, offices make up more than 130M SF, according to its website.
Of Brookfield’s 220 office properties across five continents, 139 are in the U.S., in cities like San Francisco, New York and Denver.
In 2021, Brookfield committed to a goal of transitioning all of its assets under management to net-zero emissions by 2050. In 2022, it set a benchmark to reduce emissions by two-thirds across roughly a third of its portfolio by 2030. Brookfield's website touts the company as "one of the world's largest investors in renewable power and climate transition assets" with about 2,400 units of generating capacity via mechanisms like solar, wind and hydro.
On Monday, labor union Unite Here, which is engaged in unionization efforts at Brookfield hotels, published a report claiming that although Brookfield positions itself as a leader in green finance, its affiliates have invested billions of dollars in fossil fuel infrastructure since 2020.
A Brookfield spokesperson declined to comment on the report.
CORRECTION JUNE 28, 4:30 P.M. ET: A previous version of this story contained the incorrect square footage for Brookfield Properties' U.S. office portfolio.
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