Iron Mountain Inc., a storage and information management services company, says it is progressing on the development of enhanced solutions for purchasing renewable energy, through readily available retail channels, by entering into an agreement with RPD Energy and Direct Energy to track the hourly renewable energy load of Iron Mountain data centers.
The structure will source 100% renewable energy aimed at matching the hourly usage of all Iron Mountain facilities in Pennsylvania and New Jersey (over 60 buildings), including two data centers. Conventional renewable power solutions seek to only match a buyer’s load on an annual or monthly basis without ensuring renewable power is available when clients are using electricity. Tracking hourly usage from the generator and comparing it to Iron Mountain’s hourly usage demonstrates a future view of how firms can transition to a truly carbon-free energy supply.
“Iron Mountain is seeking to move beyond the conventional approach of matching renewable power on an annual basis, to matching renewable power generation with its hourly energy use,” says Chris Pennington, global energy manager at Iron Mountain Data Centers. “This is ultimately the path needed to decarbonize energy use. We are proud to push the marketplace and be at the forefront of embracing and adopting this unique approach and believe that RPD and Direct Energy have assembled a highly repeatable product that will become a readily available retail product.”
RPD Energy, a company that specializes in corporate green energy solutions, in conjunction with Direct Energy, will provide Iron Mountain a monthly report to document the match of average hourly generation and Iron Mountain’s actual hourly offtake from the grid. To maintain the integrity of the renewable impact of the transaction, traceability and environmental claims are ensured by renewable energy credits provided via EDP Renewables North America and sourced from the same renewable developer.
