The power purchase agreement (PPA) agreed withDigital Realty supports the development of a 154MW solar park in Germany.
Iliad’s PPA covers electricity produced by the Labrit photovoltaic power plant for 15 years.
Digital Realty said its agreement with Engie will drive the expansion of renewable energies in Germany. It will use a solar plant in Brandenburg, north-east Germany, that is due to go into operation later this year.
Katrin Fuhrmann (pictured), Engie’s head of origination, said: “As a major player in renewable PPAs, we have the opportunity to match suppliers and buyers of green power, even in a highly volatile market environment. This transaction supports the development of new renewable energies in Germany and enhances the continued sustainable operation of Digital Realty’s data centres.”
Volker Ludwig, managing director of Digital Realty for Germany, said: “ The climate challenge is one of the critical issues facing society today. As an industry-leader, Digital Realty focuses on supporting the evolving needs of our global customer base, helping them deliver growth, while supporting net-new renewable energy projects where we operate.”
Digital Realty said it has achieved 100% renewable energy coverage for its entire European portfolio and its US colocation portfolio, and is carbon neutral in France.
In 2022, Digital Realty expanded its renewable portfolio and added green assets to the energy grid, contracting for 490MW of solar and wind to support its global data centres.
In France, the Iliad group said its agreement with Engie will support the development of new renewable energy capacities in the three countries where it operates: France, Italy and Poland.
Under the terms of the contract, Iliad will purchase from Engie for 15 years the electricity and guarantees of origin that will be produced by Labrit photovoltaic plant.
This will have an estimated electricity production of more than 20GWh per year, generated from nearly 60,000 photovoltaic panels.
Iliad said the Labrit solar park will benefit in particular from the global approach initiated by Engie in the Landes to develop sheep farming with local shepherds on its solar sites and install apiaries with local beekeepers.
Iliad said it has set itself the objective of covering at least 20% of its electricity consumption in France via PPAs by 2035 and accelerating the deployment of this type of project in Poland and Italy.
CEO Thomas Reynaud said: “The issue of energy supply is increasingly crucial. This PPA signed with Engie is an important first step, a symbol of our determination to secure the cost and quality of our electricity supplies, while concretely supporting the development of the renewable energy sector in France, and tomorrow in Italy and Poland.”
Edouard Neviaski, CEO of Engie Global Energy Management and Sales, said: “More than ever, we are mobilized alongside our customers to help them meet the challenge of the ecological transition while controlling their energy costs.”
