Meta has struck three new solar-energy deals this week, bringing its total contracted capacity into the nearly 1-gigawatt (GW) range. The company says the move supports its growing energy demands, especially from its artificial-intelligence-training operations and global data-centre footprint.
The deals mark a significant step in Meta’s clean-energy strategy: rather than simply buying renewable-energy credits, the company is contracting directly for large-scale solar output, often via power-purchase agreements (PPAs) that ensure the solar installations feed energy into the grid when Meta needs it. The timing aligns with Meta’s broader shift toward increasing its compute infrastructure and AI capabilities—which requires massive and predictable power supply.
Industry analysts say the scale is meaningful: one gigawatt of solar capacity is equivalent to a large utility-scale plant and can generate roughly 1 to 1.5 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity annually under U.S. sunlight conditions. For Meta, locking in this amount helps hedge against rising electricity costs, regulatory pressure around carbon emissions, and the risks of spot-market power volatility. It also sends a message to investors and regulators that Meta is aligning its operations with both environmental goals and emerging AI infrastructure demands.
Still, there are caveats. Solar capacity doesn’t always mean exclusive power for Meta—grid dynamics mean energy is shared and timing matters. Meta will still require backup, storage or grid-sourced power when the sun isn’t shining or during heavy loads. In addition, while such deals improve the “renewables on contract” metric, they don’t automatically reduce Meta’s immediate on-site fossil-fuel or spot-market power use; they shift the financial and contractual profile rather than the physical wires that feed each server rack.
For the clean-energy sector, the news underscores how major tech firms are rapidly scaling renewable-energy commitments to match exponential growth in computing demand. As AI models become larger and more power-intensive, energy-strategy choices—what grid you hook into, what clean deals you lock—are becoming as strategic as chip design or data-centre location. Meta’s nearly-1-GW solar move is less about optics and more about securing power ahead of a next wave of AI growth.
