Google has announced its signing of power purchase agreements (PPAs) for over 700 megawatts of clean energy, including its largest offshore wind projects to date in The Netherlands.
Both Shell and Eneco – owners of the Crosswind & Ecowende joint ventures – are involved in the agreements and will aim to support 478 megawatts of carbon-free energy capacity with two new-to-the-grid offshore wind farms: HKN V and HKW VI.
The PPAs will support the development of subsidy-free offshore wind farms, which could potentially contribute to around 6% of the country’s annual electricity consumption.
Google EMEA president Matt Brittin said: “To address the climate crisis and secure stable, affordable access to energy, we need to transition from fossil fuels to carbon-free energy sources. Technologies like solar and wind are a key part of this transition”.
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Also announced today Google’s first long-term Power Purchase Agreement in Italy to support an onshore wind energy project with 47 megawatts of clean energy generation capacity with Italian energy company ERG, helping to deliver carbon-free energy to its offices in Milan and Turin.
Following the signing of its first power purchase agreement in Poland last year, two additional agreements for 106 megawatts of solar generation capacity with GoldenPeaks Capital have been devised.
Finally, Google has announced two new green energy deals in Belgium, which will help to bring 11 new onshore wind farms, developed by Aspiravi and Luminus, to the grid for a total capacity of 84 megawatts.
As a result of these new agreements, the tech giant’s operations are projected to reach over 90% carbon-free energy in The Netherlands, Italy and Poland, and around 85% in Belgium, taking it a step closer to its goal of operating on 24/7 carbon-free energy in all data centres and campuses in Europe within the next six years.
Brittin added: “These efforts are part of our commitment to accelerate the decarbonisation of the world’s electricity systems, a core focus of our ambitious goal to run our data centres and office campuses on 24/7 carbon-free energy on every grid where we operate by 2030”.