Commercial, Solar, Sourcing Renewables  -  March 8, 2018

Facebook’s newest data center will be 100% RE

Facebook will power its new Newton Data Center with 100% renewable energy. The data center, Facebook’s ninth facility, is located in Newton County, Georgia. Comprising three building totaling 970,000 square feet, it is expected to be operational in 2020.

"We are committed to powering our data centers with 100 percent clean and renewable energy, and finding strong partners that can help us achieve that ambitious goal is a key part of our selection process," said Rachel Peterson, vice president of data center strategy at Facebook in a statement.

Walton Electric Membership Corporation (EMC) will power the data center, installing hundreds of acres of solar panels on Georgia's electric grid as part of the PPA with Facebook. The arrangement, designed for customer choice, is an industry first, said Ronnie Lee, Walton EMC’s CEO. He noted that the cooperative designed a community-supported solar energy program that has served as a model for electric utilities nationwide.

Another partner in the process is Morgan Stanley's commodities division, which is helping provide long-term cost stability and reliability from renewable projects to both Walton EMC and Facebook.

Facebook data centers use 38% less electricity than the average data center, due in part to the following factors:

• Cooling is accomplished using outdoor air, rather than air conditioners.
• Hyper-efficient hardware powers Facebook apps and services.
• All electricity used is 100 percent clean and renewable.

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