In a one-of-its-kind investment, Google said it has agreed to enter into a $3 billion agreement with Brookfield Asset Management wherein it gets to access up to 3 gigawatts of hydropower for its power-hungry data centres in the mid-Atlantic region.
The 20-year pact that includes power purchase agreements is said to be the ‘world’s largest corporate clean power deal’ for hydroelectricity, allowing Google to use electricity generated from Brookfield's Holtwood and Safe Harbor hydroelectric facilities in Pennsylvania.
The tech giant, as part of its efforts to reach carbon-free energy across its operations by 2030, will also invest another $25 billion in data centres across Pennsylvania and neighbouring states over the next two years, a news report said.
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Amanda Peterson Corio, Google’s head of data center energy, said in a statement that the collaboration with Brookfield is a “significant step forward, ensuring clean energy supply in the PJM region” where they operate.
The decision is expected to be discussed by Ruth Porat, president and chief investment officer at Alphabet, Google’s parent company, at an AI summit to be held in Pittsburgh, which would also be attended by US President Donald Trump. Also on the cards is an announcement on the $70 billion AI and energy investments by Google.
The latest agreement follows several of Google’s power purchase agreements that have been finalised over the last year, including one for carbon-free geothermal energy and another for advanced nuclear energy. The company is also working with the US’s largest electricity grid operator, PJM Interconnection, in a bid to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to quicken the process of hooking up new power supplies to the grid.
The technology industry on the whole is also intensifying its hunt for clean electricity to power data centres needed for cloud computing and AI infrastructure, driving US’s power consumption to record highs.
Next on the charts is Google’s expansion plans for clean energy-use to the Midwest and the Mid-Atlantic.
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