Google invest in renewable energy
Google has announced it is backing a new scheme that aims to produce electricity from renewable sources that is cheaper than power stations running on coal.
The initiative, known as RE<C, will concentrate on eco-friendly technologies such as wind power and solar energy, and will look at new ways of generating energy on a global scale.
Google expect to invest tens of millions of dollars in 2008 to support RE<C’s research and development efforts, and is currently recruiting engineers and energy experts to spearhead the ambitious programme.
The company, which is has placed a high priority on environmentalism, has been working hard to reduce its own sizeable energy demands, recently halving the amount of electricity its critical data centres consume. In addition, the Google HQ at Mountain View, California now draws around 30% of its electricity from one of the largest solar energy installations in the US.
“We have gained expertise in designing and building large-scale, energy-intensive facilities by building efficient data centers,” explains Larry Page, Google co-founder.
He added that they are hopeful the RE<C scheme will produce results sooner rather later to help limit the planet’s heavy reliance on coal, which is currently responsible for supplying 40% of the world’s energy.
“With talented technologists, great partners and significant investments, we hope to rapidly push forward. Our goal is to produce one gigawatt [enough to power a city the size of San Francisco] of renewable energy capacity that is cheaper than coal. We are optimistic this can be done in years, not decades.” continued Page.
Google’s plans have been favourably received by many involved with energy and environmentalism, and reflect the impact of Google advisor Al Gore, who shared the 2007 Nobel peace prize for his campaign to raise awareness of global warming.
“It’s a very good, positive step in the right direction,” said Stuart Dalton, spokesperson for the Electric Power Research Institute.
The move is the latest in the growing trend for major corporations to make bold pushes to prove their green credentials. Famous for their ‘Don’t be evil’ motto, Google are well aware of how important both being ethical and being seen to be ethical is to businesses operating under intense scrutiny on the world stage.
As Page himself puts it, Google now need to explore areas beyond search engines and online advertising “when they are strategic,”
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