Hyperscale data centres company, Vantage Data Centers, has entered into a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with SolarAfrica Energy (Pty) Ltd. for the supply of 87MW of solar power to its Johannesburg (JNB1) data centre campus, which is slated to open in July.
The deal will enable the expansion of SolarAfrica’s De Aar solar project located in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. The renewable energy facility is forecasted to avoid 3.8 million tons of carbon emission of CO2 over the lifetime of the agreement.
“Vantage’s investment in SolarAfrica’s De Aar project reaffirms our continued commitment to sustainability and our drive to reach net zero by 2030,” said Justin Jenkins, chief operating officer of EMEA and president of the U.K., Vantage Data Centers.
“Not only will energy from this investment be used to power our Johannesburg campus, but it will also serve as another example of using solar-driven energy across the data centre industry. In the near term, solar energy faces increasing demand, driving prices higher across South Africa. This investment, however, will ensure a stable price for our customers,” Jenkins added.
Solar PPA boost Vantage’s net-zero ambitions
According to Vantage, the solar PPA is a crucial step in the company’s long-term commitment to sustainability. In 2021, the company announced that it will achieve net zero carbon emissions globally by 2030, marking a significant milestone in its work to increase efficiencies and reduce environmental impacts at its hyperscale data centre campuses worldwide.
“With climate change being the defining challenge of our time, it’s crucial that we accelerate our carbon mitigation efforts to transform our planet into a sustainable green economy.” said Charl Alheit, SolarAfrica director.
“We are continually driven to assist our customers in reaching their green energy goals while saving them money in the process. The rollout of the 87MWp solar farm for Vantage’s campus, which will be one of the largest in South Africa, is an exciting step for us as we gear up to help even more businesses save with cheaper, cleaner energy through wheeling.”
At its completion, Vantage’s Johannesburg data centre campus will have 80MW of IT capacity, of which up to 33% is expected to be supported by the solar farm. The state-of-the-art campus, located in the thriving business and data centre ecosystem of Waterfall City, is situated on 30 acres (12 hectares) and will feature three facilities across 650,000 square feet (60,000 square metres) once fully developed.
