Satya Narayana Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, speaks during a Microsoft live event in the Manhattan borough of New York on October 26, 2016.
Lucas Jackson | Reuters
Microsoft has signed an agreement with Brookfield Asset Management to invest more than $10 billion in developing renewable energy capacity to meet growing demand for artificial intelligence and data centers, the companies announced Wednesday.
Brookfield will supply 10.5 gigawatts of renewable energy to Microsoft between 2026 and 2030 in the United States and Europe as part of the deal. The companies described the deal as the largest power purchase agreement signed between two partner companies.
The 10.5 gigawatts of renewable capacity is three times larger than the 3.5 gigawatts of electricity consumed by data centers in Northern Virginia, the largest data center market in the world.
A Brookfield spokesperson said this would result in investments of more than $10 billion in renewable energy.
The scope of the deal could expand to include additional energy capacity in the United States and Europe as well as Asia, Latin America and India, the companies said. The agreement will cover wind, solar and new carbon-free technologies.
The United States faces growing demand for electricity as the advent of artificial intelligence coincides with the expansion of U.S. semiconductor and battery manufacturing, as well as electrification of the national vehicle fleet. After a decade of stagnant growth, total U.S. electricity consumption is expected to increase 20% by the end of the decade, according to an April note from Wells Fargo Research.
Microsoft has committed to having 100% of its electricity offset by carbon-free energy purchases by 2030.
cnbctv18-forexlive
