- SB Energy’s Orion 1-3 and Eiffel solar projects are expected to be operational by mid-2024.
- The agreement is Google’s largest combined clean energy transaction in Texas.
As companies are rapidly shifting towards clean energy and transport as they seek to meet environmental and sustainability goals, Alphabet Inc’s Google on Tuesday has agreed to purchase approximately three-quarters of the renewable power from SB Energy Global’s Texas facilities as it seeks to operate data centres on carbon-free energy by 2030. SB Energy’s Orion 1-3 and Eiffel solar projects are expected to be operational by mid-2024 with a total of 1.2 gigawatts of capacity.
Rich Hossfeld, SB Energy co-CEO, said in a statement, “SB Energy is thrilled to join forces with Google to provide clean energy to match Google’s Texas data centre consumption. We share Google’s relentless drive to achieve critical climate goals through innovative infrastructure and technology and look forward to expanding our relationship with Google as we deliver renewable energy that is local, reliable, and matched to load.” The solar company also credited the Inflation Reduction Act signed by President Joe Biden, which seeks to incentivize a shift to clean energy by providing tax credits, as a reason for its expansion.
Sana Ouji, Energy Lead at Google, said: “Within the decade, we’re aiming for every Google data centre to operate on clean electricity every hour of every day; this goal requires us to continue to grow our carbon-free energy portfolio. We’re excited to partner with SB Energy to bring online four solar projects that will meaningfully grow our portfolio of renewable energy projects in the region and bring additional clean energy jobs to Texas”. The agreement is Google’s largest combined clean energy transaction in Texas.