Google has unveiled a new partnership with Intersect Power and TPG, targeting a $20 billion investment by 2030 to develop renewable energy infrastructure for clean energy-powered data centers in the U.S. This collaboration comes as tech companies face mounting pressure to address the environmental impact of expanding data centers, driven by AI growth and rising electricity demand.

“This partnership is an evolution of the way hyperscalers and power providers have previously worked together,” said Sheldon Kimber, CEO and Founder of Intersect Power. “We can and are developing innovative solutions to expand data center capacity while reducing the strain on the grid. Deep, collaborative partnerships combined with creative problem-solving are the only way that we can meet the explosion of AI growth, as well as society’s accelerating electricity demand.”

As part of the initiative, Intersect Power will develop new renewable energy and storage projects. Google will serve as an anchor tenant, enabling new data centers to be co-located with these clean energy resources. The first project is expected to become operational in 2026, with full completion by 2027.

“To realize AI’s potential, the growth in electricity demand must be met with new, clean power sources,” said Amanda Peterson Corio, Global Head of Data Center Energy at Google. “The scale of AI presents an opportunity to completely rethink data center development — by co-locating them where possible with the grid-connected carbon-free energy that keeps them up and running. We’re bringing this opportunity to life by combining pioneers at the intersection of data centers and clean energy development to synchronize load growth with new power generation in a novel way.”

Peterson Corio added that Google aims to replicate this model across the U.S. and globally.

The partnership also includes an $800 million funding round for Intersect Power, led by TPG’s climate-focused fund, TPG Rise Climate, and Google.

Jim Coulter, Executive Chairman of TPG and Managing Partner of TPG Rise Climate, emphasized the significance of the collaboration, stating, “The convergence of two megatrends — decarbonization and digitization — is creating unique opportunities for innovative partnerships. Bringing together a leading carbon-free power producer, one of the world’s largest hyperscalers and the leading private equity investor in climate solutions to capitalize on this opportunity, we are committed to delivering carbon-free data centers at lower cost and greater scale.”

This initiative aligns with Google’s broader climate goals, including achieving net zero emissions across its operations and value chain by 2030. However, the company has faced challenges in offsetting its growing data center emissions, which rose 13% in 2023 and 48% since 2019, as clean energy projects lag behind its electricity demand.

By synchronizing data center development with clean energy generation, the partnership aims to address these challenges while advancing decarbonization at scale.