- Meta has financed multiple natural gas power plants in the last 12 months
- Corporate renewable energy initiative RE100 includes Apple, Google and Microsoft among its 444 members
- Meta has previously committed to running all of its operations on renewable energy by 2020
Meta has confirmed it will withdraw from the RE100 scheme, following news it has financed several gas-fired power plants over the past year.
As the company leans heavily toward AI and the necessary data centers that come with such a commitment, it has opted to leave the collective of corporations planning the transition to 100% renewable energy, reversing a public commitment made in 2020.
While RE100 has many other members, including Apple, Google and Microsoft, Meta’s confirmation of his departure from the group indicates that he sees no immediate solution to the energy challenges posed by data centers.
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What does it mean to be a member of the Climate Group?
The RE100 initiative is led by Climate Group, a non-profit organization whose co-founder is former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair. Project membership provides organizations with access to policy support and technical advice to support plans to move towards a 100% renewable energy footprint.
When asked, a Climate Group spokesperson responded: “After several in-depth discussions between Meta and Climate Group, Meta has withdrawn from the RE100 initiative as it can no longer meet the technical criteria due to investments made in new gas energy.”
Meta is not the only one looking beyond renewable options to power its data centers. Its former RE100 co-members, Google and Microsoft, have recently invested in fossil fuel projects. However, both companies appear to have hedged their bets more broadly, with Microsoft aiming for hourly energy matching (where fossil use is combined with renewable energy) and Google employing a 100-hour battery in collaboration with Form Energy.
Data Centers Need Heavy Industry Power Levels
Moving away from commitments to renewable energy to provide data centers with the level of power they need in the age of AI is disappointing, but not entirely unexpected.
Modern data centers require power for processing, cooling and backup, and this requires a level of power that has traditionally only been seen in heavy manufacturing industries. The infrastructure currently available for renewable energy sources largely ignores supply issues, battery systems are underdeveloped and nuclear power takes years to come online.
Meta’s support of gas-fired power includes partnering with Entergy Corp on the construction of seven plants in Louisiana to deliver more than 5 GW for its Richland Parish data center.
In contrast, gas-generated electricity is faster to generate, is a known quantity, and is cleaner than coal. Until infrastructure catches up to data center demands, further withdrawals and modifications to previous green energy commitments by Big Tech should not be ruled out.
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