MENOMONEE FALLS, Wisconsin — Search engine giant Google is ramping up investments in renewable energy developments.
This is not surprising, as Google was one of the giant thirteen companies that recently signed on to President Obama’s Act on Climate Initiative earlier this summer. Google pledged to get all of its power from renewables and decrease water use at its office locations.
However, Google’s bigger impact will be financing the renewable energy sector. According to Google’s website, the company has invested $2 billion in renewable energy companies or projects since 2008.
Much of this investment has been domestic. According to Google’s website, their investments have built 2.5 gigawatts of renewable power. For context, that powers half a million homes annually.Now Google is looking to finance international renewable projects, mainly in Africa.
In July, The New York Times reported that limited and unreliable energy infrastructure severely stunts economies in Sub-Saharan Africa. For many, this limits opportunities to climb out of poverty. It is estimated that 85 percent of the continent’s population is not connected to a reliable source of power.
Because there is no infrastructure, Google and other investors are financing renewable projects to provide electricity to the region for the first time.
In 2013, Google invested $12 million into the Jasper Power project. The 96-megawatt solar photovoltaic plant now provides reliable power to over 30,000 South African businesses and homes.
Kimberley, where the Jasper Power Plant is, has become the envy of South Africa and the region. The reliable power has enabled many to improve their livelihoods.
Google recently has expressed interest to invest in Kenya’s Lake Turkana Wind Farm project. If negotiations go through, Google will be a minority stakeholder.
The Lake Turkana Wind Farm, when completed, will consist of 365 turbines spread across 165 miles in a region of Kenya that receives steady wind all year.
It is expected to provide 20 percent of Kenya’s power supply when it comes online in 2017. Many communities along the farm will have reliable power for the first time, which will help end poverty and improve livelihoods.
Google has also expressed interest in a proposed 400-megawatt wind farm, which Kenya’s government has been laying the framework for with two international development banks.
For the remotest regions, Google has financed SolarAid, a company that brings solar power to rural areas that are “off the grid.”
Due to the imminent threat of climate change, it makes sense financially and environmentally to bring renewable energy infrastructure to regions that have never had reliable power.
Google and other multinational companies are essential to making this happen. Without their investment, millions will remain in poverty and the United States will not realize potential trade partners.
– Kevin Meyers
Sources: Clean Technica, CNBC, New York Times, Think Progress 1, Think Progress 2
Photo: Flickr