US technology giant Amazon is set to invest AU$20 billion (US$13 billion) to expand Australia’s data centre infrastructure, with utility-scale solar PV plants set to power these.
The investment package aims to bolster Australia’s cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities. This aligns with the Australian government’s plan to boost business productivity and grow the economy using AI innovation.
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Although it has not been revealed exactly how many data centres will be developed as part of this funding package, Amazon noted that these will be powered via renewable energy, notably solar PV and wind power plants.
To achieve this, the tech giant has announced a new agreement to purchase power from three utility-scale solar PV power plants in Australia, which Danish renewable energy company, European Energy, is developing. Amazon has committed to buying over 170MW of energy generated across these three projects.
The partnership covers the 58MW Mokoan Solar Park in Victoria, which is already operational, and two projects currently in the pre-construction procurement phase: the 150MW Winton North Solar Park in Victoria and the 125MW Bullyard Solar Park in Queensland. Together, this totals 333MW of solar PV generation capacity.
Jens-Peter Zink, deputy CEO of European Energy, hailed the power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Amazon while hinting that the company will continue to expand its operations in Australia.
“Our Australian operations are just ramping up, and we are delighted to be able to already now deliver this scale of renewable energy to our partners there,” Zink said.
Readers of PV Tech are likely aware that the growth in data centres and AI will “transform the global energy sector”, resulting in a surge in energy demand in the next decade.
According to a recent report from the International Energy Agency (IEA), which claimed that global electricity demand from data centres is set to “more than double” by 2030 to more than 945TWh annually. This will be driven by demand from “AI-optimised data centres”, which is set to more than quadruple in the same period.
Amazon’s focus on renewables powering data centres
In recent years, Amazon has become a major purchaser of renewable energy worldwide. It plans to decarbonise its operations while also supplying cheap electricity to power its data centres and tech operations. In 2023, the organisation added over 1GW of solar and wind power operations to its portfolio in Europe alone.
Amazon said it has already invested in eight solar and wind projects across New South Wales, Queensland, and Victoria, which are helping power Amazon’s Australian operations, including data centres and fulfilment centres.
Matt Garman, CEO of Amazon Web Services (AWS), said the investment will help Australia capitalise on AI’s potential economic opportunities.
“We’re proud to be expanding our world-class data centre infrastructure, bringing more renewable energy projects online, and supporting the country’s vision to be a global AI leader. AI is a once-in-a-generation transformation, and Amazon is pleased to be empowering all Australians to innovate at scale through this investment,” Garman added.
Amazon is not the only tech giant seeking renewable energy to power its data centres in Australia. Last year, Microsoft penned a 15-year PPA with Developer Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV) Australia for a 353MW solar PV power plant in New South Wales. This was set to power Microsoft-owned data centres in the state.
You can find out more about how solar PV is supporting the rollout of data centres globally on PV Tech.
