Microsoft Corp. and Brookfield Asset Management's green energy business signed the largest corporate clean energy purchase agreement in history, as the tech titan pushes up its investment in artificial intelligence.
According to a statement released Wednesday, Microsoft Corp and Brookfield Asset Management's renewable energy business announced a sustainable energy partnership that breaks all previous records.
Brookfield Renewable Partners plans to offer more than 10.5 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity in the United States and Europe beginning in 2026.
That is equivalent to around ten nuclear power plants and represents the increased need for electricity from data centers and artificial intelligence. Technology businesses are clamoring for more sustainable energy to satisfy their climate targets, even as total energy consumption rises.
"It is unquestionably the largest single statement for a corporate clean-power purchase deal ever," Bloembergen analyst Kyle Harrison wrote in a message. "It ranks Microsoft as the second-largest corporate consumer of clean energy via PPAs, following Amazon.
After experiencing little growth over the last two decades, US electricity consumption is expected to skyrocket in response to demand from new data centers required to develop and manage AI, as well as factories and electric vehicles. Last month, Exelon Corp. forecasted a 900% increase in power demand from data centers planned for the Chicago area.
Microsoft is investing billions of dollars in developing AI capabilities and the data centers required to support them, believing that the technology will be a crucial asset in attracting clients to its cloud computing services.
AI tools are extremely resource-intensive to operate, and many businesses lack the data center capacity to handle their large-scale AI activities. Instead, they're turning to huge tech giants like Microsoft, Google, and Amazon.com Inc. for assistance with cloud-based AI systems.
Microsoft and Brookfield claimed the contract is nearly eight times larger than any other corporate power purchase agreement, and it may be expanded to cover future renewables capacity in Asia and Latin America.
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