Both Google and Microsoft have invested in major renewable energy contracts to power their data centers.
According to The Register (opens in a new tab), Google signed a 100-year, 12 MW corporate power purchase agreement with the Scottish offshore wind development called "Moray West", in the relatively remote Moray Firth region of Scotland.
The joint venture is owned by EDP Renewables and French company Engie, and will see the research giant source 5 TWh of green energy from the 882 MW offshore wind farm, starting in 2025, to be used to power its Google Cloud region. UK.
What about Microsoft?
Microsoft has also signed its own Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) in Ireland covering more than 900 MW of new renewable energy, making the announcement on its European Cloud Features blog (opens in a new tab).
Some sources have indicated (opens in a new tab) that this will include a deal with Norwegian company Statkraft and Irish company Energia Group, Power Capital Renewable Energy, which will see the tech giant secure more than 366 MW of clean energy under of the new agreement.
Why are they investing?
Both companies have big sustainability goals on the horizon. The type of hyperscale data centers that the two companies dominate, along with Amazon Web Services (AWS), have a colossal environmental footprint.
According to an independent study by the IEA, data centers consume about 1% of all electricity consumed worldwide.
By 2025, Microsoft aims to transition to 100% renewable energy supply, and by 2030, Microsoft aims to have 100% of its electricity use come from carbon-free energy purchases.
Matt Brittin, president of Google EMEA, said his company has "a goal of running completely on carbon-free energy by 2030" and that "in the UK we will be running on 90% or close to carbon-free energy by 2025." .
Google said the latest deal will mean its UK cloud region will join six other regions, including Finland, Iowa, Montreal, Spain and Toronto, which will run on or near 90% carbon-free power starting in 2025.