24x7 carbon-free energy (part two): getting to 100%

Digital infrastructure operators have started to refocus their sustainability objectives on 100% 24x7 carbon-free energy (CFE) consumption: using carbon-free energy for every hour of operation. To establish a 24x7 CFE strategy, operators must track and control CFE assets and the delivery of energy to their data centers and use procurement contracts designed to manage the factors that affect the availability and cost of renewable energy / CFE megawatt-hours (MWh).

The first Update in this two-part series, 24x7 carbon-free energy: expectations and realities, focused on the challenges that data center operators face as they look to increase the share of CFE consumed in their facilities. This second report outlines the steps that operators, grid authorities, utilities and other organizations need to take to enable data centers to be 100% powered by CFE. As previously discussed, data centers that approach 100% CFE using only wind and solar generation currently have to buy several times more generation capacity than they need.