In early July, Google announced two big pieces of energy-related news. First, the company announced that it had signed a deal to buy electricity from the world's first fusion power plant.
On Monday, Google released its latest environmental report, showing that emissions have increased by 50% since 2019 and the energy consumption of its data centers has doubled since 2020.
Big tech companies are looking for clean power to power their data centers as energy demand and emissions soar. But it’s unclear how much of that energy and emissions come from AI.
Fusion energy
The deal between Google and Commonwealth Fusion Systems is to provide Google with 200 megawatts of power from Commonwealth’s first commercial fusion power plant, the Arc plant planned for construction in Virginia. The contract with Google represents half of the plant’s capacity.
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Commonwealth Fusion Systems, which just signed a deal to supply 200 megawatts of power to Google, is building its first reactor in Devens, Massachusetts. Photo: Commonwealth Fusion Systems . |
But the plant does not yet exist. Commonwealth is still in the process of completing the Sparc demonstration reactor, which is not expected to be completed until 2026.
This isn’t the first time a major tech company has struck a deal with a fusion energy company. Microsoft signed a deal with Helion a few years ago to buy 50 megawatts of power from a plant that was expected to be operational in 2028. However, experts have expressed doubts about whether that deal will be realized.
Still, Google’s announcement is a notable milestone for the fusion industry due to the scale of the commitment and the prestige of Commonwealth, a spinoff from MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center that is considered by industry insiders to be one of the leading candidates to build the first commercial plant.
“We see this as a long-term commitment,” Michael Terrell, Google's director of advanced energy, said in a press release.
The news of Google’s move into fusion comes just days after the company released a new environmental report. While Google has some positive accomplishments, some of the numbers in the report are troubling.
Google's electricity consumption and emissions skyrocket
Google's emissions increased more than 50% compared to 2019, including a 6% increase last year alone. This is a trend that is contrary to the company's goal of net zero emissions by 2030.
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Commonwealth Fusion Systems factory produces powerful magnets for fusion reactors. Photo: Commonwealth Fusion Systems . |
Google has invested billions of dollars in clean energy projects, including next-generation technologies like advanced nuclear and enhanced geothermal. These investments have helped curb rising emissions, but so far they have barely kept pace with the company’s growing power needs.
Google's data center electricity consumption alone increased 27% year-over-year, and doubled in 2020 to more than 30 terawatt hours, roughly equal to Ireland's annual electricity consumption.
However, Google’s report downplays the role of AI in electricity consumption. “However, it is important to note that the increase in electricity demand is not solely due to AI. The rapid growth of Google Cloud, continued investment in Search, and the expansion of YouTube also contributed to the overall increase,” the report said.
A Google representative told MIT Technology Review that they do not break out AI consumption separately. This is similar to the case with large companies, so the actual impact of AI on electricity consumption is largely speculative at this point.
Source: https://znews.vn/con-doi-dien-cua-google-post1566939.html
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