Entergy Arkansas has announced plans to supply power for Google’s proposed $4 billion technology investment in Arkansas. The investment will include the establishment of a new data center in West Memphis, marking Google’s first facility in Arkansas. The data center will draw power from Entergy Arkansas’s existing generation and transmission infrastructure.
Entergy Arkansas has submitted the proposal for regulatory approval to the Arkansas Public Service Commission. Google will cover all power-related costs for the new facility. Entergy Arkansas believes that addition of a major industrial consumer like Google whill distribute costs more efficiently across the entire customer base thereby helping reduce electricity tariffs for its customers.
Additionally, the company plans to develop a new 600 MW solar plant supported by a 350 MW battery energy storage system in Jefferson County. Google will pay rates that will cover the total cost of this solar-plus-storage project. It will also launch an Energy Impact Fund worth $25 million to promote energy affordability initiatives in Crittenden County and nearby regions.
REGlobal’s Views: Data center growth is leading to a rapid rise in energy demand across different states in the US. In many regions, this demand is now being served by a combination of solar and battery storage, which not only provides firm and affordable power to the tech companies, but also ensures clean energy consumption by the energy guzzling data centers.
