When I suggested recently that Google and Amazon should own their own solar farms so that they could control costs and hopefully sell carbon-neutral energy they way they do cloud space, I wasn’t aware that the Page-Brin company was already in the business and about to invest in solar in an even bigger way. From Shan Li at Los Angeles Times:
“Google Inc. plans to invest $80 million in six utility-scale solar facilities in California and Arizona as the tech behemoth continues to put money toward alternative energy projects.
The Mountain View, Calif., company will partner with solar developer Recurrent Energy and private equity firm KKR & Co. on the projects, which are estimated to generate enough combined electricity to power more than 17,000 homes, Google said in a blog post.
‘You’d think the thrill might wear off this whole renewable energy investing thing after a while,’ Google wrote on its official blog. ‘Nope — we’re still as into it as ever, which is why we’re so pleased to announce our 14th investment.’
In 2011, Google hooked up with KKR and Recurrent on four solar facilities south of Sacramento that have since started generating power. The tech giant said it has committed more than $1 billion in total on green energy projects around the globe.”