Original story from Smart Grid News, January 8, 2015 by Doug Peeples.
[CleanTech Alliance member] Google has never been shy about its wholehearted commitment to renewable energy — not only for its own uses but for everyone else, too. Now, the search giant is investing in what is said will be the largest solar project in Utah.
The project, known as Utah Red Hills Renewable Energy Park, is expected to be the largest project developed and built in North America by Norwegian developer Scatec Solar. The 104 megawatt installation will be owned by a Google-Scatec Solar partnership. Total cost is expected to be $188 million. Under terms of the financing agreements, Google will provide tax equity.
The installation is expected to generate about 210 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, which will be bought under a purchase agreement by Rocky Mountain Power. It is expected to be ready for operation by the end of this year.
Google has plenty of experience with investing in solar power projects. Red Hills is its 18th and, as of September 2014, its total investments in renewable energy totaled $1.5 billion.
And the earlier statement about Google not being shy about commitment to renewables? The company has done more than invest in a lot of renewables projects. Renewable energy powers about 35 percent of the company's operations and its campuses are used as test beds for new technology pilot projects. Also, the company buys power from wind farms nearby for its data centers.
For more: background article