Google inks its largest offshore wind power deal

Google has penned its biggest deal yet to purchase offshore wind power for its data centers in Europe.

The tech giant has signed up to offtake 478 MW of two wind farms off the coast of the Netherlands developed by Crosswind and Ecowende – joint ventures between supermajor Shell and Dutch utility Eneco.

CrossWind’s 759 MW Hollandse Kust Noord wind farm, commissioned in December last year, and Ecowende’s 760 MW Hollandse Kust West VI, planned for launch in 2026, will deliver power to Google’s data centers in Eemshaven and Middenmeer.

Together with the existing power purchase agreements we have previously signed in the Netherlands, these projects will help our Dutch data centers and offices reach more than 90% carbon-free energy in 2024, Google said in a release.

The subsidy-free offshore wind farms are expected to contribute to about 6% of the country’s annual electricity consumption and will foster technology innovation and ecological development. CrossWind and its partners are exploring a range of technologies, including floating solar, energy storage and hydrogen production, while Ecowende’s wind farm is expected to be the most ecological wind farm yet, with minimal impact on the natural habitat of birds, bats and marine mammals and a thriving underwater world.