Google has signed an agreement to purchase all the energy produced in the first phase of the Steel River Energy Center, a mega-complex of solar energy with battery storage that will be built in the state of Arkansas, in the United States.
The project will begin operations in 2029 and will have an initial capacity of 1,6 GW in solar power generation, in addition to 2 GWh of battery storage. The contracted energy will be sufficient to supply approximately 315 homes.
The contract is part of the company's strategy to expand the use of clean energy and offset the increased electricity consumption caused by the expansion of its data centers and artificial intelligence applications.
Despite acquiring all of the plant's output, Google will not use this electricity directly in its facilities. In practice, the company has signed a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA), paying a pre-agreed amount for the plant's production.
The electricity will be fed into the power grid, while the company's data centers will continue to be supplied by the local infrastructure, which consists of different generation sources such as natural gas, coal, nuclear power, and renewables.
When fully completed, the Steel River Energy Center will have 2,45 GW of solar capacity and 2,9 GWh of battery storage, making it one of the largest projects of its kind in the United States.
The first two phases of the project have already secured approximately €3,25 billion in funding and prioritize the use of steel and solar panels produced in the North American market.
AI drives energy demand
Google's investment comes amid rapidly growing electricity consumption by large technology companies. According to the company, its energy consumption increased by 37% in the last year.
This trend is also seen in companies like Meta and Amazon, which have been rapidly expanding the capacity of their data centers to meet the growing demand for artificial intelligence applications.
Meta, for example, announced on Monday (13) that it will increase its investment in its mega data center in Richland Parish, Louisiana, in the United States, to more than US$50 billion, practically doubling the initial estimate of US$27 billion.
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