Google Energy, a subsidiary of Google, signed a deal on Tuesday to purchase 114 megawatts of energy from a wind farm in Iowa, reports. The deal is the first for Google Energy, which was created last December.
The deal includes a 20-year purchase agreement, under which Google Energy will buy energy from wind project developer .
Google Senior Vice President of Operations Urs Hoelzle said in a that buying wind energy is part of Google's effort to reduce carbon emissions and become a carbon neutral company. Furthermore, because Google Energy is approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the company can buy and sell energy on the wholesale market.
“By contracting to purchase so much energy for so long,” Hoelzle said, “we’re giving the developer of the wind farm financial certainty to build additional clean energy projects.”
–Michael Webster