Innovation
Apple is building another solar farm
Apple's new data center in Central Oregon is following in the clean power footsteps of its other massive complex in North Carolina.
At some of Apple's data centers, which the company says have been powered with 100 percent renewable energy since last March, it's easy to see where the clean energy is coming from.
Right outside Apple's massive data center in Maiden, North Carolina, is a sprawling 100-acre solar array. But at other facilities, the clean power source is less evident because the company buys wind or solar energy on the wholesale market.
That's about to change for Apple's Prineville, Oregon data center. The new facility, which Apple has said would be every bit as environmentally responsible as the one in Maiden, is getting its own solar farm.
According to a report from Oregon Public Broadcasting, Apple plans to buy up land near its facility that will house a solar array.
Last year, Apple said it planned to buy renewable energy on the wholesale market through the state's Direct Access program to meet its 100 percent clean energy source goals at the Oregon data center. Now it appears Apple will flip that plan on its head by building a solar farm and selling the power back to the utilities, according to OPB report.
Thumbnail photo: Solar array at Apple's Maiden, North Carolina data center from Apple
This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com