How the Program Works
As the semiconductor industry carbon footprint continues to grow, it is imperative for the industry to work together to achieve a more sustainable future. The Catalyze program, managed by Schneider Electric, fosters collaboration and partnership among corporate sponsors and their suppliers to enable collective decarbonization impact.
The Catalyze program provides a path for suppliers to the semiconductor industry to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the transition to renewable electricity, regardless of a supplier’s size or expertise in renewable electricity procurement. Participation in Catalyze is available and free to any company that supplies to a program sponsor. Suppliers that join Catalyze will gain access to critical support and resources to navigate the options within the renewable electricity market. Schneider Electric provides expert consultation to industry suppliers in any stage of their decarbonization journey to create a renewable energy procurement strategy.
How it works:
Step 1: Register
First, indicate your interest in the program by clicking the Register tab on this website. Registering only indicates that your organization is interested in learning more and grants you access to program resources; there is no obligation or cost to participate.
Step 2: Connect
After registration, your status as a supplier to the Catalyze sponsors will be verified. Once verified, you will receive a verification email and be contacted by a member of the Schneider Electric Catalyze team with an invitation to complete program onboarding. Your answers to the onboarding questions allow the Catalyze team at Schneider Electric to tailor your engagement in the Catalyze program and suggest best-fit renewable electricity opportunities. Information shared during registration and onboarding will be kept confidential.
Step 3: Learn
Login to the dedicated Catalyze platform to access renewable electricity education resources, view program announcements, and register for upcoming live education sessions. The live education sessions will cover key internal considerations and market factors relevant to renewable electricity adoption and provide access to expert consultation at no cost. The education material is designed to help your organization learn more about renewable electricity options and to answer questions such as: What are the fundamentals of renewable electricity procurement? How can companies in the Catalyze program collaborate to secure competitive pricing and contract terms for renewable electricity? How can the semiconductor industry take action and demonstrate climate leadership?
Step 4: Act
Your participation in Catalyze gives your company the opportunity to explore renewable electricity procurement options in different markets. Experts at Schneider Electric will help design a procurement strategy that meets the scale and needs of your business. Through the program your company can explore individual purchasing opportunities, such as on-site or certificate purchasing, or the option to go to market as part of a buying group. Catalyze provides the unique opportunity to join a "buyers' cohort," in which multiple companies combine electricity demand and go to market together. This model creates access to renewable purchasing mechanisms for many suppliers that would not have enough electricity demand to meet the scale needed for this type of purchasing on their own. Buyers' cohorts can create access to more favorable pricing and contract terms, procurement with greater environmental impact, and a community of suppliers sharing best practices.
Catalyze is a collective initiative to engage companies that supply to the semiconductor industry in climate action. The program is designed to provide training and procurement support to enable suppliers to achieve a successful entry into the renewable electricity market. Suppliers that register for Catalyze will receive free access to live and on-demand educational resources that cover the different types of renewable electricity purchasing and how to evaluate which is most appropriate. Suppliers are also invited to explore renewable electricity buying opportunities and purchase renewable electricity with the support of Schneider Electric. The program is free for participating suppliers and, while it is encouraged, there is no obligation for suppliers to participate or purchase renewable electricity through the program.
The companies that are sponsoring Catalyze have joined together to provide suppliers across the semiconductor industry with access to high-quality renewable electricity education, renewable electricity purchasing support, and scalable renewable electricity purchasing opportunities. Any company that supplies to one or multiple sponsors is invited to join and participate in the program.
Participating in Catalyze enables you to learn more about renewable electricity and explore purchasing options at no cost to you and with no obligation to buy renewable electricity. Purchasing renewable electricity is complex. It requires knowledge of market principles, terminology, and unique contract structures, evaluation and management of risks, and the involvement of internal stakeholders. Catalyze is designed to provide critical education and advisory support from Schneider Electric to make the process easier. The program also provides suppliers with access to scalable, impactful renewable electricity purchasing mechanisms that might not have been previously available to them.
No. Your participation in this program will not impact any procurement decisions made by the sponsor companies.
Catalyze is open to any company that supplies to one sponsor or multiple sponsors. Schneider Electric will work with each company that registers to determine the best renewable electricity options for their facilities around the globe.
To register for Catalyze, click the Register tab on the Catalyze registration website. You will be asked to share a few basic details about your company’s electricity consumption. Data regarding your electricity consumption will not be shared with the Catalyze sponsors. After you register and are verified as a supplier to one of the sponsors, you will receive an invitation to an onboarding call with Schneider Electric and access to the Catalyze platform hosted on Zeigo Hub, where you can access program information, educational resources, tools to take action, and more. You will also begin receiving email invitations to program events and updates regarding procurement opportunities. There is no cost to participate or obligation to purchase renewable electricity if you register.
Individuals from your organization should register to participate in the program. Multiple individuals from the same company can register to receive program access – there is no limit to the number of registrants per company. Typically, we encourage those with responsibility for sustainability, procurement, and/or electricity procurement to participate in the program. If your company is interested in pursuing a PPA, we also encourage key stakeholders, including those in finance, accounting, treasury, and legal roles who have responsibility for energy purchasing and/or sustainability, to register and engage in relevant education opportunities.
No, you can register at any time. However, we encourage suppliers to register during the summer and winter, prior to the start of the program’s renewable electricity education curriculum, which runs twice a year and typically begins in March and September.
- CONNECT
After you register and are verified as a supplier to one of the Catalyze sponsors, you will receive an invitation to complete an onboarding call with Schneider Electric. During the onboarding call, Schneider Electric will provide a program overview, gather information regarding your organization’s climate goals and electricity consumption, and answer any questions you have. The information shared during the onboarding call will help Schneider Electric advise on how you can make the most of the content in the program. This information will not be shared with Catalyze sponsors. After you are verified as a supplier to one of the Catalyze sponsors you will also receive access to Zeigo Hub, where the Catalyze platform is hosted.
- LEARN
Following registration, you will be invited to engage in the program’s core renewable electricity education curriculum. Schneider Electric runs two live renewable electricity education series per year (series content is identical). The education series begins with sessions covering renewable electricity basics and then shifts to focus on the specific considerations of power purchase agreements. Market Brief education sessions, providing an overview of renewable electricity purchasing options in different global markets, will supplement the core curriculum. All sessions are recorded, and recordings are available on the Catalyze platform.
- ACT
Following education, you will be invited to explore your purchasing options within the renewable electricity market. We welcome continued engagement with the program as your company’s renewable electricity adoption strategy develops. For example, your company may register, attend education sessions, and determine that Environmental Attribute Certificates (EACs) are an appropriate purchasing decision and then re-engage and attend the education series to learn about pursuing a power purchase agreement (PPA).
When you register for the program, you will be asked for basic information including name, email, and company. You will also be asked to share a few basic details about your company’s electricity consumption. Data regarding your electricity consumption will not be shared with the program sponsors. As the program progresses, Schneider Electric may gather additional information regarding your company’s electricity consumption, sustainability goals, etc. to help you determine your best-fit renewable electricity purchasing solutions.
Schneider Electric will work with suppliers to assess which purchasing option(s) are most suitable. Determining the suitability of solutions will depend on a company’s electricity demand, markets, experience, goals, etc.
The following mechanisms are available to explore:
- Power Purchase Agreement (PPA): A PPA is generally a long-term contract (typically 10-20 years) between a renewable energy developer and a creditworthy buyer(s). PPAs enable renewable energy developers to secure financing for new wind or solar projects and can allow buyers to purchase renewable energy in a cost-competitive, scalable, and environmentally impactful manner.
- Aggregated Power Purchase Agreement: An aggregated PPA is a structure in which suppliers form a “buyers’ cohort” and aggregate their electricity consumption to go to market as a group to pursue a PPA. Aggregating electricity demand to go to market for a PPA lowers the electricity volume that a single company must be ready to commit to a PPA, thereby making PPAs accessible to more companies.
- Energy Attribute Certificates (EACs) (known as Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) in North America, Guarantees of Origin (GOs) in Europe, International Renewable Energy Certificates ( I-RECs) globally): A renewable electricity generator is credited with EACs as it generates; for every one MWh of renewable electricity that is generated, one EAC is created. EACs function as a market mechanism, represent the “proof” of clean, carbon-free generation, and can be used by companies to meet renewable electricity purchasing goals, greenhouse gas reduction targets, and Scope 2 electricity emissions disclosures.
- Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) – Distributed energy resources (most commonly onsite solar PV) are renewable installations built directly on or at a company’s facility. Facility owners may use onsite installations to power their own operations, add new renewable electricity to the grid, and generate energy attribute certificates.
Schneider Electric administers Catalyze and is responsible for providing renewable electricity education to suppliers and supporting suppliers to explore the renewable electricity market and purchase renewables through the program. Suppliers are not obligated to work with Schneider Electric as an advisor; they may choose to work with another advisor to purchase renewable electricity even after participating in the program. Schneider Electric is the world’s leading advisor on corporate renewable energy purchasing, having consulted on more than 16 gigawatts of utility-scale PPA purchases globally. As an independent advisor, Schneider Electric focuses on helping corporate clients understand the costs, benefits, risks, and opportunities of all types of renewable energy contracts.
Contact the Schneider Electric Catalyze team at catalyze@se.com.
Schneider Electric’s data privacy policy can be found here.
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Basic Information
Please fill out the registration form below. Upon completion of registration and verification by the sponsor companies, your account will be created and you will receive an email with instructions on how to engage with the Catalyze program and access the online platform. Registering at this stage only commits your organization to wanting to learn more. There is no obligation or cost to participate. By registering for this program, you agree to be contacted by Schneider Electric Sustainability Business and its affiliates via email and Schneider Electric may share your contact information with the program sponsors / sponsor. For more details, please read our privacy policy. If you have questions, please reach out to catalyze@se.com.