Google, TPG Rise Climate and Intersect Power announced a strategic partnership to accelerate the development of data centers powered by renewable energy across the United States. This collaboration is expected to inject $20 billion into new renewable energy infrastructure by the end of the decade.
In their press releases, the companies said the initiative is an energy-first approach to data center design that seeks to alleviate strain on the grid while improving energy reliability and affordability. .
To support this effort, the partnership secured $800 million in funding, led by TPG Rise Climate and Google, with additional support from Climate Adaptive Infrastructure and Greenbelt Capital Partners. The funds will be used to finance the initial clean energy assets and infrastructure needed to launch the co-located data center projects. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC served as financial advisor for the transaction. This funding will also help develop long-term renewable energy solutions that directly address both energy demand and environmental concerns.
The partnership aims to meet the growing energy demand of the growing data center sector, driven in large part by the explosion of artificial intelligence (AI) applications. Intersect Power will spearhead the development of large-scale clean energy assets, including solar, wind and battery storage systems, with Google serving as an anchor tenant for new co-located data center campuses that will harness this renewable energy.
By 2026, the International Energy Agency (IEA) expects energy demand from data centers, cryptocurrencies and artificial intelligence to double, highlighting the urgent need for solutions that align with the sustainability goals of these industries.
By co-locating data centers with high-capacity, low-cost clean energy sources, the partnership intends to reduce the need for extensive transmission infrastructure, thereby lowering costs and minimizing transmission losses. The partnership’s first project is already underway, with plans for a large-scale co-located data center and clean energy generation facility expected to be operational by 2026 and fully completed by 2027.
