As we work towards our formidable objective to run on 24/7 carbon-free power (CFE) and meet growing demand for Google services, being a accountable grid citizen is one among our high priorities. Right this moment we’re asserting collaborative efforts with Energix Renewables and Swift Present Power that help decarbonizing the electrical energy supplying our operations in Ohio and Virginia, together with our new website beneath building in Indiana.
Bringing new CFE on-line within the area has been difficult as the provision of latest transmission and clear power sources has not stored up with the area’s accelerated financial progress. A excessive quantity of latest clear power initiatives and related transmission system upgrades has created a backlog, delaying the technology of latest sources of CFE.
In an effort to assist overcome these challenges, and ship 24/7 CFE onto the grid the place these information facilities function, we’ve labored with Energix Renewables on an funding framework that permits us to put money into, and purchase energy from, a 1.5 gigawatt (GW) portfolio of latest photo voltaic initiatives all through the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland (PJM) grid over the following three years. By offering each funding capital and power offtake, these initiatives have a clearer path to building, bringing the deliberate building begin of 150 MW of queue backlog from 2025 forward to 2024.
In collaboration with Swift Present Power, we’re enabling a 299 megawatt (MW) clear power undertaking in PJM. The photo voltaic undertaking known as Black Diamond was designed to require minimal community upgrades to connect with the grid, leading to an earlier supply of CFE initiatives than these in comparable phases of improvement. As well as, we’re investing alongside Swift Present Power in a 593 MW photo voltaic undertaking, Double Black Diamond, which would be the largest photo voltaic undertaking within the Midwest Unbiased System Operator (MISO) grid system.
These new initiatives within the area are along with the partnership we introduced final 12 months with EDPR NA Distributed Technology (EDPR NA DG) to create a 500 MW community-based photo voltaic power portfolio, including new technology to the grid with initiatives primarily in Ohio. This collaboration additionally funds pre-weatherization efforts, serving to low- and moderate-income (LMI) households entry power effectivity packages and scale back the burden of power prices.
Trying to the Future
Electrical energy decarbonization is a system-wide problem, and there’s no one-size-fits-all resolution. We’re dedicated to collaborating throughout the business to develop new methods to deliver new, clear power to the grids the place we function — enabling the digital services that each companies and people use each day.
To study extra about Google information facilities, go to google.com/datacenters, and sustainability.google for extra details about our broad sustainability efforts.
