Through a newly signed power purchase agreement with Google Inc., EDF Renewable Energy (EDF RE) will be supplying the company's data center with the full output of the 201 MW Great Western Wind Project.
Located in Woodward and Ellis counties near the base of the Oklahoma panhandle, the project will commence construction in the first quarter of 2016 and be fully operational by end of 2016. Great Western will comprise 30 3.3 MW V117 and 51 2.2 MW V100 wind turbines from Vestas.
The deal, announced at COP 21 in Paris, takes Google one step closer to its commitment of eventually powering 100% of its operations with clean energy. Google says it is the largest corporate purchaser of renewable energy in the world, and this project adds to the company's long-term contracts to buy green electricity from wind generation. Its total portfolio of renewables is now almost 2 GW.
Google joins EDF's growing North American portfolio of corporate purchasers, including Procter & Gamble, Microsoft, Yahoo!, Grupo Modelo and Walmart.
This new PPA builds on the relationship forged between the two companies; in December 2012, Google made an approximately $200 million equity investment in EDF RE's Spinning Spur Wind Project, a 161 MW facility located in Oldham County, Texas.
