Google Takes Renewable Energy Investments Over $1 Billion Mark

Internet giant Google Inc. on Wednesday announced an equity investment of $200 million into a 161-megawatt wind farm, taking its total investment in renewable energy to more than $1 billion – in projects that can generate up to 2 gigawatts of capacity.

Internet giant Google Inc. on Wednesday announced an equity investment of $200 million into a 161-megawatt wind farm, taking its total investment in renewable energy to more than $1 billion – in projects that can generate up to 2 gigawatts of capacity.

According to CNN, the Spinning Spur Wind Project, located in Oldham County, Texas, will be Google’s 11^th investment into renewable energy; and will be able to generate enough energy on its own to power more than 60,000 homes for a year.

[quote]“We look for projects like Spinning Spur because, in addition to creating more renewable energy and strengthening the local economy, they also make for smart investments: they offer attractive returns relative to the risks and allow us to invest in a broad range of assets,” wrote Google’s senior manager of corporate finance Kojo Ako-Asare on the company’s blog.[/quote]

“We’re also proud to be the first investor in an EDF Renewable Energy project that is not a financial institution, as we believe that corporations can be an important new source of capital for the renewable energy sector,” Ako-Asare added.

Electricity generated through the Spinning Spur wind farm has been already begun being distributed to residents across Texas and New Mexico, Google said. Other Google investments have also sought to power its own data centres, which could consume up to 476 megawatts of electricity if they were all operating at full capacity.

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According to Greenpeace, Google is now sourcing more than 20 percent of its global energy use from green sources such as solar and wind.

Among its other renewable energy investments include the Atlantic Wind Connection, an offshore grid that will link 7,000 megawatts of offshore wind generation to the coast, and Shepherds Flat, one of the world’s largest wind farms.

Check out this infographic, which illustrates how much power Google generates thanks to its renewable energy investments:

Via: Google Blog