Apple Prepping 100% Alternative Energy Data Center
We are headed in the right direction with this kind of decision. Now if we can only get the Republcans out of the way...
The less Coal, and oil we use the better for the U.S. and the world.
HomeProduct GuidesSoftwareInternetApple Prepping 100 Percent Green Data Center
Apple Prepping 100 Percent Green Data Center
By Angela Moscaritolo May 18, 2012 03:17pm EST 2 Comments
Apple says that its new $1 billion data center in Maiden, North Carolina will be powered entirely with renewable energy by the end of the year.
On a new Web page announcing its renewable energy plans, the Cupertino tech giant said an "unprecedented" 60 percent of the power at Maiden will be produced onsite from renewable sources. Apple says it will purchase the other 40 percent of power from local and regional renewable energy sources.
The company is currently building two massive solar array installations near its core data center in Maiden. Once finished, the solar farms, which will cover a total of 250 acres, will supply 84 million kWh of clean, renewable energy annually. Later this year, Apple also plans to build a smaller bio-gas-powered fuel cell plant that will provide more than 40 million kWh of renewable energy annually.
"This mean Apple will be producing enough onsite renewable energy — 124 million kWh — to power the equivalent of 10,874 homes," according to the site.
Apple's emphasis on renewable energy comes after Greenpeace last month criticized the tech giant for relying on "dirty energy" to power its cloud. The environmental organization in 2011 gave Apple low marks for the efficiency of its data centers. Among other major tech companies, Apple scored the worst last year for its "coal intensity."
Apple, however, says its operations centers in Austin, Sacramento, California, and Ireland are all 100 percent powered by renewable energy, as are its facilities in Munich. The tech giant's corporate headquarters in Cupertino, however, currently uses 50 percent renewable energy.
Apple also promised that its newest data center in Prineville, Ore. will run on 100 percent renewable energy. The company also plans to purchase renewable energy for its Newark, Calif. data center.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2404618,00.asp
