Google Signs Water Energy Deal Of IDR 48.7 Trillion, The Biggest In History For Clean Energy Sources

JAKARTA Google has signed an agreement to obtain up to 3 gigawatts of water energy in the United States. This makes it the world's largest corporate clean energy agreement involving hydroelectric power. This agreement was announced on Tuesday 15 July amid the huge efforts of technology companies to meet energy needs from an increasing data center.

The US$3 billion (Rp48.7 trillion) deal is the result of a collaboration between Google and Brookfield Asset Management, which includes a 20-year electricity purchase agreement from two water facilities located in the state of Pennsylvania.

In addition, as Semafor reports, Google is also planning to invest 25 billion US dollars (Rp406.4 trillion) for data center construction in Pennsylvania and its surrounding states in the next two years.

The tech industry is currently racing to find sources of clean energy on a large scale to support the operation of data centers used for artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing. This demand has pushed electricity consumption in the US to a record high, after nearly two decades of stagnation.

Alphabet's President and Chief Investment Officer (induk of Google's company), Ruth Porat, is scheduled to discuss the deal at an AI summit in Pittsburgh. US President Donald Trump is also scheduled to attend the event, in which total AI and energy investments worth 70 billion US dollars will be announced.

"This collaboration with Brookfield is a big step in ensuring the clean energy supply in the PJM area, where we operate," said Amanda Peterson Corio, Head of Google Data Center Energy, in a statement.

In recent years, Google has signed various innovative energy purchase agreements, including for new generation of carbon and nuclear free geothermal energy. The company is also working with the largest US power grid operator, PJM Interconnection, to use AI technology to accelerate the process of coupling new energy supplies to the national power grid.

This latest agreement includes an initial framework agreement with Brookfield, which is also the owner of Brookfield Renewable Partners and the operator of renewable energy generation. Two of their water facilities in Pennsylvania will be upgraded and their licenses renewed as part of this agreement.

Google also stated that the deal would be expanded in the future to the Mid-Atlantic region and the internet, as the company seeks to strengthen its clean energy network in the United States.