Apple procures pledges from Foxconn, TSMC to fulfil its orders using renewable energy

Apple has persuaded Foxconn and TSMC - who manufacture its iPhones and silicon respectively - to use renewable energy in completing orders from the OEM by next year. The 2 suppliers have apparently joined 13 others in signing up to the Cupertino firm's drive to conduct business using sustainable power only. This brings the total number of Apple manufacturing partners who have done this over the last few years to 44.

Other examples of device component industry leaders on this list include BOE, Compal, Corning, SDK and STMicroelectronics. Apple has turned these independent manufacturers on to the use of 'green' energy in a bid to use 4 gigawatts or more of the same as it goes about its business by 2020. This achievement would mean that the company could say that 50% of its total energy use comes from renewables by that year.

There are a number of advantages to this for Apple, including the prestige it could hold over the heads of other massive multinationals such as Amazon in this regard. Then again, the retail giant is making moves towards being more 'sustainable' itself: it has just announced that it will be buying the entire output of a new major wind farm to be built in Donegal, Ireland. The aim of this deal is to power its services-arm headquarters, which is located in the same country.