Microsoft Buys 125 MW Wind Energy From EDP Renewables in Ohio

US Software giant Microsoft has signed a power-purchase agreement with EDP Renewables for 125MW of wind power capacity in Ohio. EDP Renewables is a global leader in the renewable energy sector and the world’s fourth-largest wind energy producer. We had covered Microsoft’s earlier purchases that took its total renewables portfolio to alost 1.2 GW.

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The PPA includes two 15-year-long power purchase agreements as well as the construction of a new wind farm in the state. The 125MW wind farm in Paulding County, Ohio, is expected to come online in 2019 and will produce enough clean electricity to power the equivalent of more than 36,000 homes annually.

Timber Road IV Wind Farm will be EDP’s fourth operational wind farm in Ohio and its third operational wind farm in Paulding County. The four wind farms total 392MW, contributing to more than 40 percent of the state’s installed wind capacity.

“Bringing new wind projects online, particularly in states with relatively few projects but strong potential for growth, delivers both economic benefits and environmental progress in the near term and well into the future.” said Brian Janous, GM of Microsoft Energy and Sustainability.

This isn’t the first attempt that tech companies have been trying to produce clean, usable energy. In 2018 several giants had pledged to bring a 100 percent renewable energy goal. Having already invested in wind and solar power since 2010, Google wanted to be the first to make a deal to purchase all the electricity from a 114 MW wind farm in Iowa.

This deal brings Microsoft’s directly-purchased renewables arsenal to almost 1.4GW, said the software group, which is among a clutch of technology giants that has led the way in signing deals with wind and solar projects, often to power datacentres.

In India of course, Microsoft was also a bit of a pioneer, in the course of its deal with Atria Power for 3 MW of power for its Bengaluru Facility.

In addition, the new wind farm will generate approximately $1.1 million each year in annual property tax revenue for the local government as well as land lease payments to area farmers and landowners. Also, Microsoft has entered into a 15-year deal, in which it will be the single off-taker of the renewable energy that is produced by Wilkinson Solar Energy Center. Such a facility is anticipated to generate local investment of $20 million and estimated to create approximately 500 jobs in the course of construction.

Earlier this year, Greenpeace’s preliminary clicking clean report revealed that Microsoft has increased the amount of renewable energy it uses to power its operations in Virginia to 34 percent.

The report also revealed that Amazon was lagging far behind on its renewables commitment in Virginia, with only 12 percent of AWS’ energy consumption in the state coming from renewable sources.