Correction: Paragraph 4 is changed to indicate that SK Hynix joined the program originally in 2020.

By Stephen Nellis

(Reuters] Apple Inc. announced on Wednesday that 175 of its suppliers now have pledged to use clean electricity for work done for it. The commitment will allow Apple to add more than 9 billion watts to power grids.

This new group of suppliers is an addition to the 70 and almost 8 gigawatts respectively of power that the company reported last fiscal year. It’s part of the company’s effort to carbon-neutralize its vast global supply chain by 2030.

Companies must agree to use energy sources like solar and wind energy to do work for Apple. This is part of Apple’s last-year efforts to ensure its products have a “net zero” impact on the climate.

SK Hynix Inc from South Korea is among the new suppliers. This company supplies the memory chips used in Apple products and was one of the first Korean companies to sign up for Apple’s program. Franco-Italian chipmaker STMicroelectronics will also join, which is a major supplier of chips for iPhones. Apple claimed that it has launched nine renewable energy projects since joining the program.

Apple has now partnered with suppliers in 23 countries including India, Japan, and South Korea.

This is one of the benefits of building core businesses across different markets and grids that demand clean energy. That’s helpful to policy makers,” Lisa Jackson, Apple’s vice president of environment, policy and social initiatives told Reuters.

Apple previously signed major suppliers such as Foxconn parent Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, which assembles many of its products, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, which makes Apple’s processor chips, to clean energy pledges in 2019 https://www.reuters.com/article/cbusiness-us-apple-energy-idCAKCN1RN0JQ-OCABS.

Apple announced that it would provide funding for 10 small renewable energy projects to help under-resourced communities. These projects will include collaboration with South Africa, Colombia, and the Oceti Sakowin Power Authority, which was formed in western America by six Sioux tribes.