Ikea uses sun, wind to be energy independent 

Energy independence by 2020? The idea has been touted on the U.S. presidential campaign trail, but global home furnishings retailer Ikea is announcing plans today to achieve that goal with solar and wind power.

As more U.S. businesses go solar, the Swedish retailer says it will rely on the sun and wind to produce all the power it uses at its stores and buildings worldwide within a decade. It plans to install more rooftop solar panels, erect wind farms and reduce its energy usage by replacing 1.2 million incandescent light bulbs with 85%-more-efficient LEDs (light-emitting diodes).

"Each roof is a power station in the making," says Steve Howard, Ikea Group's chief sustainability officer, adding that the United States has "fantastic sun as good as anywhere in the world." Ikea already has solar panels atop 34 of its 38 U.S. stores and distribution centers.

Howard says parts of the U.S. also have great wind potential, and Ikea, which is building wind farms abroad, would like one stateside. "But we find the policy environment rather choppy," he says. Production tax credits for the U.S. wind industry are set to expire in December unless Congress renews them.