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(Getty)
- Amazon is adding South Africa to the countries where it generates its own electricity to run its power-hungry data centers.
- Its new solar plant in the Northern Cape is due to begin construction next year.
- Once the installation is ready, the electricity will be transmitted through the Eskom network to wherever Amazon needs it.
- The plan is part of a global effort by Amazon to go green in its energy use, but it was announced just as SA was facing a high probability of loss of charge again.
- For more stories, visit www.BusinessInsider.co.za.
South Africa will soon be one of the countries where online giant Amazon generates its own electricity from “utility-scale” wind and solar plants, then using Eskom’s power lines to bring that power where it is needed.
Amazon announced 26 such projects on Thursday, adding France, Germany, Italy and South Africa to the list of countries where it will generate power to power its large data centers, which support both its own services and those of many other companies. It has promised to be a “net zero carbon” entity by 2040 and says the new projects will make it the largest corporate buyer of renewable energy on the planet.
On its current trajectory, 100% of Amazon’s business will be run on renewable energy by 2025, CEO Jeff Bezos said in a statement.
Amazon has been adding data centers in South Africa and recently made them available as a “region” for data storage and processing, which means that its capacity will grow as demand for such services in South Africa and nearby countries.
Although Amazon itself did not provide details, Business Day reported that the energy that Amazon intends to generate in South Africa will come from a solar project in the Northern Cape, which will begin construction in 2021. From there, the energy will be transferred through the Eskom network to where it is necessary.
Such transmission using Eskom power lines is possible, mainly theoretically, for other users. Amazon’s project could “really modernize the electricity market where consumers can get cleaner energy through state-owned distribution grids while paying for maintenance in the process,” Chris Haw, CEO of Sola Group, which must develop the project. told Business Day reporter Lisa Steyn.
Amazon says it has 68 solar roofs in various distribution and classification centers around the world, in addition to 59 utility-scale solar and wind projects.
The announcement of the Amazon project in South Africa came on the same day. Eskom warned of a “high probability of cargo spillage” thanks to unexpected outages at several of its power plants, mostly coal-fired.
(Compiled by Phillip de Wet)
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