Microsoft inks largest ever Corporate deal for green energy

Microsoft Inks Largest Ever Corporate Deal For 10.5 GW With Brookfield

By Tony Cheu/ Updated On Fri, May 3rd, 2024

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Brookfield Renewable and Microsoft have entered into an energy framework agreement for 10.5GW of renewable capacity.

The deal is meant to power upcoming data centres owned by Microsoft, as it doubles down to build stronger AI capabilities that will need much more energy at data centres to deliver. It is estimated that Microsoft would be investing US$10 billion for Brookfield to build these data centres between 2026 and 2030. While the focus would be on solar and wind, the option of any other carbon free energy alternative is also on the table.

Brookfield Asset Manager , which owns Brookfield Renewables has close to 35 GW of renewables in its portfolio, including projects under construction. It’s extended pipeline of green energy projects is almost 155 GW now.

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Top US tech giants have been at the forefront of the corporate PPA market, going beyond their own requirements at times to enable renewable energy capacities. Google has been building up a portfolio of over 7 GW worldwide. Meta, owner of Facebook expects that by 2025, 86 Meta-supported wind and solar projects in the U.S. will add 9.8 GW of renewable energy to local grids across 24 states and 74 counties. Meta claims all its operations are already powered by renewable energy. Strong earnings and a consumer facing role has ensured these firms lead the push towards green energy in the US, helping establish a market for other corporates to benefit from as well.

Microsoft itself has a net zero and carbon negative target of 2030, and this deal is a sign that the firm is going to ensure it is met, despite the higher than expected energy demands in the coming decade.

The Data centre business itself is expected to attract a lot of green investments, as the energy hungry business offers the best combination of ability to pay and need to comply when it comes to green goals. In India as well, we have seen a clear shift towards renewable energy among data centres.