In order to benefit the resonance around the AI, Rush has forced tech companies to dramatically extend their data center marks. This has been the good news for companies like NVIDIA, but this has also led to an unprecedented growth in the power industry.
According to the JLL, the new and expanded data centers are expected to double the demand for the sector by 2029. As a result, developers and tech companies are operating to lock the capacity. The demand for nuclear and natural gas has increased, but some technologies have benefited in a nearby period of solar.
Although solar powers, what experts are called periodically – it will not produce if the sun is shining – so important has been so important that companies contain large deals.
Unlike advanced nuclear reactors, which has not yet been deployed on a commercial scale, is the solar powerful technology. And unlike new natural gas power plants, which takes years in planning and construction takes time, is the average completion time for new solar form About 18 months about 18 months. In addition, it is one of the lowest sources of new production capacity.
Since the beginning of 2025, tech companies and data center operators have supported 12 solar deals, each has added more than 100 MW in the grid.
January
Meta started the year with a 200 MW solar agreement with the Multinational Electric Utility Angi. The purchase went to the solar farm near the company’s existing data center in Texas. At the time of the deal, Meta had the capacity to produce more than 12 gigwats in the renewable portfolio.
Later in January, the Star Gate AI partnership between the Open AI, Oracle and Softbank Group was reported through Bloomberg, at least partially, by solar. SB Energy, which is part of the Soft Bank portfolio, is expected to produce solar installations in collaboration with grid scale batteries.
Meta closed the month with another large -scale solar deal, with the Spanish renewable developer Zelstra. The contract was 595 MW capacity.
February
Meta continued its series in February, investing in one 505-megawat solar project With Cyprus Creek renewable sources, which is manufacturing a massive installation in Colomin County, Texas, about 150 miles northwest northwest of Austin.
Microsoft also entered the field in February. The company has long been a buyer of renewable energy to provide electricity to its work, and added a further 389 MW of solar energy to the contract with North America for EDP. The deal covers three different solar farms, two in Illinois and one in Texas. The purchases have helped Microsoft remain the leading pledge to strengthen their tasks using zero carbon power.
Amazon also made a major purchase, supporting a hybrid project on the Peninsula Iberian, which includes air, solar and pumped hydroelectric storage. The deal included a total of 476 MW, of which 212 are solar.
Outside the United States, data center operators are also investing in solar energy. In India, CTRL built itself 125 megawatt facility In two stages, the first half was completed in June 2024 in early February. In South America, Telecom Argentina agreed to buy electricity from one 130 MW Solar Form MSU is manufactured by Green Energy.
March
Microsoft added another three solar progress in March, which once again focused on Midwest. These projects are spread over Illinois, Michigan and Missouri, and they are being manufactured by AES. Simultaneously, they will provide Microsoft with 475 MW capacity, which will increase its 34 GW portfolio.
Cisco joined the game with a 100 MW Dell With X -Elio, a solar developer who is owned by Brock Field, who is an asset manager BIG BET Power purchases on renewable sources see the capacity to buy Sisco from two different Texas solar projects.
Meta added 200 megawatts of solar to its portfolio in March A contract with rwe. The solar farm will be built in the southeast of Austin.
In Italy, the data center operator data 4 signed 10 -year -old contract With utility to buy electricity from 148 MW solar farm in the northwest of Edison Energy Rome.
More deals are likely
Since tech companies seem to be the race to add AI to each product and potential market, data centers are spreading to maintain speed. This growth requires power, and some technologies have also been placed as solar energy.
Utility scale solar pre -exist The cheapest The shapes of the ability to produce new without subsidy count, reduce everything except the beach air. It is also in a hurry to deploy and can be given a commission in stages, which can allow the data centers to pull electricity before the entire project is over.
These features have jointly promoted the contract with large tech companies and data center developers to provide close -term benefits to solar energy. This is a trend that is likely.