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<\/p>\n20-year contracts could provide up to 3 gigawatts of hydropower capacity<\/p>\n
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Google has announced a $3 billion deal with Brookfield Asset Management’s renewables arm to source carbon-free hydropower, as part of its broader strategy to meet AI-driven electricity demands.<\/p>\n
Under the landmark agreement, Google will purchase 670 megawatts of capacity from Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners’ two hydropower plants \u2013 Holtwood and Safe Harbor \u2013 located in Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n
The 20-year contracts could ultimately provide up to 3 gigawatts of hydropower capacity for the tech giant across the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest.<\/p>\n
Brookfield said both Holtwood and Safe Harbor will be relicensed and modernised to align with Google’s clean energy and reliability requirements.<\/p>\n
“At Google, we’re dedicated to responsibly growing the digital infrastructure that powers daily life for people, communities and businesses,” said<\/a> Amanda Peterson Corio, Google’s Head of Data Center Energy.<\/p>\n “This collaboration with Brookfield is a significant step forward, ensuring clean energy supply in the PJM region where we operate. Hydropower is a proven, low-cost technology, offering dependable, homegrown, carbon-free electricity that creates jobs and builds a stronger grid for all.”<\/p>\n Connor Teskey, President of Brookfield Asset Management, said the partnership reflects the vital role hydropower can play in enabling hyperscalers like Google to meet sustainability targets.<\/p>\n “Delivering power at scale and from a range of sources will be required to meet the growing electricity demands from digitalization and artificial intelligence,” Teskey added.<\/p>\n The deal comes as part of a shift among tech giants to secure long-term energy supplies as demand surges from the explosion in AI workloads.<\/p>\n Companies like Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google have been racing to build large-scale datacentres whilst attempting to limit the environmental impact and meet net-zero carbon pledges<\/a>. Google and Microsoft both made \u2018net-zero carbon by 2030\u2019 pledges and both also pledged to be water positive within the same time scale. Both carbon emissions and water consumption are tracking in the wrong direction.<\/a><\/p>\n Ruth Porat, president and chief investment officer of Google’s parent company Alphabet, is expected to discuss the deal at a high-profile AI summit in Pittsburgh, where President Donald Trump is also scheduled to speak. The event is expected to unveil over $70 billion in AI and energy investments.<\/p>\n The surge in energy demand from AI and cloud services has prompted renewed interest in a mix of power sources \u2013 from nuclear<\/a> and gas to renewables.<\/p>\n Over the past year, Google has signed several energy deals, including those involving carbon-free geothermal energy and advanced nuclear. The company is actively working with PJM Interconnection, the nation’s largest electricity grid operator, to leverage AI in streamlining new grid connections.<\/p>\n Whilst Google focuses on renewables, other hyperscalers have pursued similar ambitions through different paths.<\/p>\n Last month, Meta announced it had reached an agreement to keep a nuclear reactor operated by US utility Constellation Energy in Illinois running for the next 20 years. Microsoft has also recently committed to a 20-year nuclear power purchase deal next to the site of a historic reactor meltdown.<\/p>\n