Amazon announced two new renewable energy projects on Thursday.
The tech giant will invest in a wind farm in Cork, Ireland, and a solar farm in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, USA.
According to an Amazon news release:
- The wind farm in Ireland will provide 23.2 megawatts (MW) of renewable capacity, with expected generation of 68,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of clean energy annually.
- The solar farm in Virginia will provide 45 MW of renewable capacity and is expected to generate 100,000 MWh of clean energy annually.
The two projects are projected to begin producing clean energy in 2020 and will be used to power the company’s Amazon Web Services data centers.
Kara Hurst, Director of Sustainability, Amazon, said:
“Playing a significant role in helping to reduce the sources of human-induced climate change is an important commitment for Amazon.
“Major investments in renewable energy are a critical step to address our carbon footprint globally. We will continue to invest in these projects, and look forward to additional investments this year and beyond.”
Ireland and Virginia welcome the announcement
Richard Bruton, Ireland’s Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, said:
“Under the Climate Action Plan, we are committing that 70 percent of Ireland’s electricity will come from renewable sources by 2030. Industry leadership is key to helping us reach this target.
“This project is another example of AWS’s commitment to renewable projects in Ireland, adding clean energy to the grid, and supporting Ireland’s climate commitments. Construction will begin on this project this year and will start contributing to Ireland’s renewable energy capacity by 2020. We look forward to continuing to work with AWS as we strive to make Ireland a leader in the renewable energy space.”
Virginia Senator Mark R. Warner welcomed the announcement.
“I applaud Amazon for their continued investment in clean and renewable energy projects in the Commonwealth of Virginia,” said Warner. “This solar energy project in Pittsylvania County will lead to a cleaner environment and more jobs in the community.”
Virginia Governor Ralph Northam said:
“It’s wonderful to see the announcement of these new projects, which will help bring more renewable energy to the Commonwealth of Virginia where Amazon has already helped bring significant solar energy projects online.
“Amazon’s new solar farm in Virginia will create jobs and economic development in rural Virginia, and will continue to build upon our role as a leading state for renewable energy in the U.S.”