Why MN8?

Aug 08 2024  |  4 min read

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What’s in a name? A name represents personality, beliefs, goals, ambitions and so much more. For individuals and organizations, a name acts as both an introduction and an identity. At MN8 Energy, our name serves as both a description of our philosophy and a representation of our mission – to be a key source of renewable energy for the enterprise customers we serve.

When you visit our website, one of the first things you read is, “You have the power to change the future of energy.” That phrasing is no accident. That’s because we believe commercial and industrial energy users drive large-scale change when they choose to decarbonize, and our role is to ensure customers’ access to clean energy supply and other solutions to help them wherever they are on their journey to decarbonization and greater sustainability.

The United States’ electricity system is one of the most carbon-intensive in the world. That means when we deploy a clean megawatt of generation here, it moves the needle more significantly than in other markets where resources like offshore wind, carbon-free nuclear and hydropower represent a much larger share of electricity usage. MN8 works with utilities and enterprise customers to source clean energy, flexibility assets like energy storage, and electric mobility infrastructure to accelerate the pace of EV adoption.

Leaving behind one name to create our own

So why did we choose the name MN8 Energy? The genesis of MN8 Energy began when the organization was a part of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, operating as Goldman Sachs Renewable Power (GSRP). Our decision to spin off into a separate organization — transforming an investment platform into an end-to-end decarbonization solutions provider — called for a new identity that aligned with the new goal of supplying decarbonization solutions to enterprise customers.

In partnership with design firm Thackway McCord, MN8’s Management Committee and Board of Directors came together to find a name that could epitomize the work of our team. Across many meetings and hundreds of options, the name ‘MN8 Energy’ had the most resonance for our founding team.

Like solar, radiating outward

MN8, a shortening of the word ‘emanate’, captures the goal of our organization. The word emanate denotes the idea of something originating from a source and spreading outwards, as energy flows from an origin point or as the sun’s rays spread across the globe.

As an organization, MN8 Energy is an origin source of renewable energy for the enterprise customers we serve. Our decarbonization solutions, including solar, battery storage and electric vehicle charging, spread energy from this point of origination to the customers that utilize the power we generate.

Creating reliability and surety for customers, not chasing volatility

Founded on the belief that organizations and individuals should have the power to choose how their power is produced, MN8 Energy provides the opportunity for our enterprise customers to access the clean energy and electrification infrastructure they need to meet their goals. From companies looking for their first clean energy purchases to those in the vanguard pursuing advanced goals like 24/7 carbon-free energy, MN8 is your long-term partner for your decarbonization journey.

Unlike many companies that build projects only to “flip” them within a few years, racing from opportunity to opportunity, MN8’s founders had a different vision: of being as stable as the sun overhead, owning and operating clean energy and electrification infrastructure long-term, so we can provide reliability and surety to customers planning how to achieve their sustainability goals today and in the years ahead.