Google, PacificLight & Rexus Bioenergy Partner for Green Data Centers in Singapore
Google and the electricity business Pacific Light and the renewable energy developer Rexus Bioenergy have signed a new 10-year deal to build a wood-to-waste facility in Singapore and supply clean energy to Google for use in powering its data center and regional activities.
The agreement is the most recent in Google’s string of renewable energy announcements in Asia, which also includes the company’s first renewable energy purchase agreement in Japan in May and the recent establishment of a clean energy-focused collaboration in Taiwan with BlackRock.
The firms claim that the new agreement will help Google meet its goal of running entirely on carbon-free energy (CFE) by 2030. To function on a 24/7 CFE basis, a corporation must balance the supply and demand of power in each region it serves, every hour of the day.
The energy source for Singapore is primarily liquid natural gas (LNG), a powerful greenhouse gas, according to the Singapore Economic Development Board. Due to its lack of rivers for the production of hydroelectric power and its lack of acreage for significant solar or wind power deployment, Singapore is similarly limited in its ability to implement traditional renewable energy infrastructure.
Google’s Head of Clean Energy & Power for Asia Pacific, Giorgio Fortunato, stated:
“We are enthusiastic about this project because it shows how innovation and technology are essential to achieving our clean energy goals, particularly in a market with scarce renewable energy resources like Singapore. This biomass power plant will help us achieve our objective of sourcing carbon-free energy continuously for every grid in which we operate by supplying reliable, clean, dispatchable power.
The Rexus factory turns wood into electricity, including waste wood from building debris, pallets, and crates, as well as waste wood from horticulture and the logistics sector. The International Renewable Energy Certificate (I-REC) standard will be used to certify the renewable energy produced by the new WtE facility. Additionally, it will be combined with a pilot-scale carbon capture system, the purpose of which will be to redirect the captured CO2 into downstream purposes. Together, Sobono Bioenergy and V8 Environmental designed and provided funding for the 13.2MW WtE project.
Oh Wee Khoon, Chairman, Rexus said: “This first-of-its-kind WtE plant pushes the boundary of process innovation and circularity concepts building upon our past endeavors. We are also excited to contribute to Singapore’s local food and biofuel innovations through demonstrative carbon capture initiatives, such as microalgae production and growing tomatoes in CO2-enriched greenhouses.”
According to the business, the plant combines cutting-edge technology and is anticipated to have a 10% higher energy efficiency than Singapore’s traditional WtE plants. Starting in 2026, the plant is anticipated to run seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day.
