Meta this week signed three contracts for nearly 1 gigawatt of solar power, another step toward meeting the growing needs of its data centers and artificial intelligence projects. In total, the company has purchased more than 3 GW of solar power by 2025, TechCrunch reports .
Solar energy has become a major source of power for technology corporations because it is relatively cheap and quick to build, making it an ideal choice for the rapid growth of data centers.
On October 27, Meta announced a deal to purchase 600 megawatts of electricity from a large solar power plant located in Texas. The facility is scheduled to be operational in 2027. Although it will not be directly connected to the company’s data centers, the energy generated will feed into the local grid, offsetting the consumption of these facilities.
On October 30, the company announced two contracts in Louisiana for the purchase of 385 megawatts of green attributes. These projects are expected to be completed in two years. In this case, it is not about the physical supply of energy, but about the purchase of certificates that allow the company to count the use of “green” energy from renewable sources instead of fossil fuels.
These certificates, known as Environmental Attribute Certificates (EACs), were introduced many years ago when renewable energy was more expensive than conventional energy. They allowed companies to cover the additional costs of renewable energy and incentivized the development of such projects.
However, the cost of solar and wind generation has now fallen significantly, and experts question the extent to which EACs actually contribute to the emergence of additional renewable capacity.
Experts emphasize that if companies seek to offset the growth in electricity consumption due to the development of artificial intelligence, they should invest in creating new renewable plants, not just buying certificates.
