Dive Brief:
- Meta has signed a power purchase agreement with renewable energy company Zelestra for a solar plant located in Freestone County, Texas, the companies announced Tuesday.
- The electricity generated at the Palmera Solar Plant will help support Meta’s goal of adding more renewable generation to the grid while powering its operations with 100% clean energy, according to a release. The plant has a capacity of 180 megawatts direct current, a unit that represents the maximum power solar panels can generate under ideal, standardized conditions.
- The new deal builds on an existing partnership between Meta and Zelestra, which specializes in developing and operating clean energy projects and providing decarbonization solutions to large corporations. The companies said they have PPAs covering around 1.4 gigawatts of direct current of solar capacity across eight U.S.-based projects, all expected to go online by 2028.
Dive Insight:
Meta and Zelestra’s partnership includes several projects across the country. Zelestra said it recently began building out the Skull Creek Solar Plant in Anderson County, Texas — which has a generation capacity of 176 MWdc — and the Reclamation Solar Project in Gibson County, Indiana — which has a generation capacity of 200 MWdc. Both projects are backed by Meta PPAs and are expected to support around 400 jobs at peak construction time, according to the companies.
Once completed, the two solar plants will join Zelestra’s 81 MWdc Jasper County Solar Project in Indiana, which recently became commercially operational and is the first project to be delivered under the Meta-Zelestra partnership, according to the release.
“Meta is committed to bringing new renewable energy to the grid, and our expanding relationship with Zelestra is helping make that possible at scale,” Amanda Yang, Meta’s head of clean and renewable energy, said in the June 9 release. “These projects aren't just advancing our energy goals — they're creating jobs and delivering long-term value in the communities where they operate.”
Meta, which owns social media platforms Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has a goal to reach net-zero emissions across its supply chain by 2030. However, the company, like its tech peers, has been experiencing an increase in emissions related to artificial intelligence use and has been investing in an array of clean energy and low-carbon solutions to manage AI’s needs and related emissions.
