Technology firm Meta Platforms, parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has selected Silicon Ranch to provide its data centers in Tennessee and Georgia with 100 percent renewable energy.
The California-based tech company has announced seven new solar farms with total capacity of 720 MW to support its operations in the region. The solar facilities will be funded, built, owned, operated and maintained by Silicon Ranch, a provider of customized renewable energy, carbon, and battery storage solutions.
Four projects totaling 160 MW are being built in Tennessee under the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) Green Invest program. Silicon Ranch says it will work with TVA and local power companies to deliver these projects, which are expected to come online in 2024 and support Meta’s operations in Tennessee and Alabama.
Silicon Ranch has partnered with cooperative Walton Electric Membership (EMC) for three solar projects in Georgia with a total generating capacity of 560 MW. These projects will be delivered in each of the next three years.
Altogether, this represents close to $2 billion in solar power investment by Silicon Ranch.
Urvi Parekh, Head of Renewable Energy at Meta, said, “As we continue to support our global operations with 100% renewable energy, we are pleased to expand our partnership with Silicon Ranch, a trusted partner who shares our commitment to have a positive impact on the communities where we locate.
“Each of the solar facilities serving Meta will incorporate Silicon Ranch’s transformative Regenerative Energy model of land management, a holistic approach that co-locates renewable energy production with regenerative agriculture practices.”
The announcement of the seven new projects comes as Silicon Ranch delivers two additional solar facilities to support Meta’s operations. The projects include the 70-MW McKellar Solar Farm with TVA in Madison County, Tennessee, and the 125 MW DeSoto I Solar Farm in partnership with Walton EMC in Lee County, Georgia.
Meta has now partnered with Silicon Ranch on a total of 16 solar facilities with a combined capacity of approximately 1,500 MW to serve its operations in Georgia and the Tennessee Valley. Eight of the projects are now operational, producing approximately 630 MW of solar energy.
“Meta’s commitment to support their operations with 100% renewable energy is directly responsible for our own commitment to invest more than $2.3 billion across more than a dozen rural communities in Georgia, Tennessee, and Kentucky,” Reagan Farr, President and CEO of Silicon Ranch, said. “As a company that calls this region home, we look forward to being active members of each community for decades to come.”
Based in Menlo Park, California, Meta Platforms is a multinational tech giant owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, among other products and services.
Walton EMC is a customer-owned and -focused electric utility serving accounts in 10 Northeast Georgia counties between Atlanta and Athens. Meanwhile, the TVA is a corporate agency that provides electricity for business customers and local power distributors serving nearly 10 million people in parts of seven southeastern states.
