OREANDA-NEWS. Merck (NYSE:MRK), known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, announced today that it has received an ENERGY STAR 2015 Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its continued improvement of energy performance and leadership in energy management in both the pharmaceutical and industrial sectors.

Merck has been an ENERGY STAR partner since 1995 and recognized by the EPA for 10 consecutive years, two times as Partner of the Year and now an eighth time for Sustained Excellence.

“Merck's philosophy of being a responsible corporate citizen includes ensuring we manage our energy use efficiently,” said Rodney Freeman, vice president, global workplace & enterprise services, Merck. “Our partnership with ENERGY STAR helps us focus on our main goal of reducing energy consumption, and we are proud that we are using greener sources of energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”

The award recognizes four Merck manufacturing sites that have achieved ENERGY STAR rankings in the top 25 percent of pharmaceutical plant energy performance nationwide: Arecibo, Puerto Rico; Cleveland, Tenn.; Las Piedras, Puerto Rico; and Elkhorn, Neb.

Also achieving certification this year were office buildings in Whitehouse Station, N.J., as well as office buildings in Upper Gwynedd, Pa. and West Point, Pa.

Additionally, three sites were recognized for meeting the ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry by reducing their energy intensity by 10 percent over a five-year period. The sites recognized are Barceloneta, Puerto Rico; Friesoythe, Germany; and LaValle, France.

“Through their sustained participation with ENERGY STAR, Merck is helping Americans save money, save energy and do their part to reduce our nation’s greenhouse gas emissions that fuel climate change,” said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. “I applaud Merck for earning EPA’s highest ENERGY STAR award, the 2015 Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence Award, demonstrating a strong commitment to energy efficiency and to preserving a healthy planet for future generations.”

About ENERGY STAR

ENERGY STAR is the simple choice for energy efficiency. For more than 20 years, people across America have looked to EPA’s ENERGY STAR program for guidance on how to save energy, save money, and protect the environment. Behind each blue label is a product, building, or home that is independently certified to use less energy and cause fewer of the emissions that contribute to climate change. Today, ENERGY STAR is the most widely recognized symbol for energy efficiency in the world, helping families and businesses save \$300 billion on utility bills, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by two billion metric tons since 1992. 

About Merck

Today’s Merck is a global health care leader working to help the world be well. Merck is known as MSD outside the United States and Canada. Through our prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products, we work with customers and operate in more than 140 countries to deliver innovative health solutions. We also demonstrate our commitment to increasing access to health care through far-reaching policies, programs and partnerships. 

Forward-Looking Statement

This news release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Merck’s management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

Risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to, general industry conditions and competition; general economic factors, including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations; the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and health care legislation in the United States and internationally; global trends toward health care cost containment; technological advances, new products and patents attained by competitors; challenges inherent in new product development, including obtaining regulatory approval; Merck’s ability to accurately predict future market conditions; manufacturing difficulties or delays; financial instability of international economies and sovereign risk; dependence on the effectiveness of Merck’s patents and other protections for innovative products; and the exposure to litigation, including patent litigation, and/or regulatory actions.

Merck undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in Merck’s 2014 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the company’s other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at the SEC’s Internet site.