(left to right) – Guy Danskine, Managing Director, Equinix Australia, The Hon. Lily D’Ambrosio MP, Minister for Climate Action, Energy and Resources and the State Electricity Commission, and Nina Taylor MP, Labor Member for Albert Park.
With support from the Victorian government Equinix installs one of the largest solar systems in Australia
Under a program to reduce energy costs and help address climate change, Equinix, Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX), the world’s digital infrastructure company®, has deployed a 1MW rooftop solar system at its ME1 International Business Exchange® (IBX®) data centre in Melbourne, bringing additional clean power to local grids where Equinix operates.
In what is one of the largest data centre rooftop solar deployments in Australia, Equinix has now completed installation of rooftop solar systems at eight of its data centres, including Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne and Sydney, which collectively provides a total of approximately 1.8MW of clean energy to local power grids.
To assist in the funding of this latest rooftop solar deployment in Melbourne, Equinix claimed Victorian Energy Efficiency Certificates (VEECs), which is part of the Victorian Energy Upgrades (VEU) programme established by the Victorian government to help reduce power bills and greenhouse gas emissions.
The Hon. Lily D’Ambrosio MP, Minister for Climate Action, Energy and Resources and the State Electricity Commission
Officiating the unveiling ceremony of the solar system at Equinix ME1 data centre today, the Hon. Lily D’Ambrosio MP, Minister for Climate Action, for Energy and Resources and for the State Electricity Commission, said: “Data centres are energy intensive, but through the VEU program Equinix has been able to install a large-scale solar system that reduces their operating costs and helps to lower their emissions.
“Since 2009, the VEU has helped more than 2 million households and 150,000 businesses lower their energy bills and we look forward to saving them even more when we bring more options into the program soon.”
The 1MW rooftop solar system is Equinix’s largest onsite rooftop solar PV system globally, and one of the largest at any data centre in Australia. It reinforces Equinix’s continued focus to add clean energy to the local grid and contribute towards decarbonation.
Earlier this month, Equinix announced the signing of its first long-term renewable energy Power Purchase Agreement in Asia-Pacific, securing 151MW of renewable energy from the Golden Plains Wind Farm – East in Victoria, which will supply enough energy to the grid to cover Equinix’s 17 IBX data centres across Australia.
Guy Danskine and The Hon. Lily D’Ambrosio MP, Minister for Climate Action, Energy and Resources and the State Electricity Commission
Guy Danskine, Managing Director, Equinix Australia, said: “Deploying rooftop solar systems at our Australian data centres is an important step in our overarching strategy to help decarbonise the grid and foster a more sustainable future for data centres. In Australia, we have invested millions of dollars in solar systems and have plans to expand this further. We are constantly exploring ways to deliver our digital infrastructure in the most sustainable way to address surging digital needs of businesses and support the development of the country’s digital economy.”
Globally, Equinix’s renewable energy coverage has been more than 90% since 2018, and in 2022, Equinix achieved 96% renewable energy coverage. Considering the company’s growth, renewable energy purchasing on a MWh-basis has increased 29% over the past two years, with the target to achieve 100% renewable energy coverage by 2030. Based on current load projections, Equinix recent Power Purchase Agreement with Golden Plains Wind Farm is expected to provide the final 4% towards its 100% renewables target by 2030.
Highlights / Key Facts
- Despite a fluctuating business environment, organisations continue to focus on sustainability. According to Equinix 2023 Global Tech Trends Survey, while innovating, digital leaders are keeping a close eye on the sustainability of their IT infrastructure with 74% having a plan to manage the environmental impact of growing data usage. Additionally, 76% of respondents are measuring and actively trying to limit the environmental impact of their IT equipment and 71% will only work with IT partners who can meet key carbon reduction targets. Further, 75% report sustainability is one of their organisation’s most important drivers.
- Victorian Energy Efficiency Certificates (VEECs) are certificates created under the Victorian Energy Upgrades program when certain energy efficiency activities, such as rooftop solar, are undertaken. Each certificate represents one tonne of greenhouse gas emissions reduction (CO2-e).
- Equinix’s solar system portfolio in Australia comprises seven IBX data centres and one xScale data centre – BR1 in Brisbane, CA1 in Canberra, ME1 and ME2 in Melbourne, and SY2, SY4, SY7 and SY9x in Sydney, providing approximately 1.8MW of power to local grids where Equinix operates.
- There are two on-site electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in ME1. These are freely available to Equinix employees and visitors and contribute to previous and ongoing investments in EV charging infrastructure in Australia.
- In June 2021, Equinix became the first data centre company to commit to being climate neutral globally by 2030, aligned to an approved near-term science-based target. These commitments are backed by an aggressive green financing plan and a comprehensive sustainability agenda to advance investments and innovations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It reflects the significant role Equinix plays in greening its customers’ digital supply chains and addressing the evolving needs of its stakeholders.
- In 2022, Equinix invested a total of $45M toward energy efficiency projects, resulting in associated annual energy consumption reduction of approximately 69,000 MWh and reducing Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) ratio by 5.5% from 2021 to 2022.
- Equinix has issued US$4.9 billion of green bonds since 2020, which have been fully allocated to support 172 green building projects across 105 sites, 33 energy efficiency projects, and two Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) projects.
About Equinix
Equinix (Nasdaq: EQIX) is the world’s digital infrastructure company®. Digital leaders harness Equinix’s trusted platform to bring together and interconnect foundational infrastructure at software speed. Equinix enables organizations to access all the right places, partners and possibilities to scale with agility, speed the launch of digital services, deliver world-class experiences and multiply their value, while supporting their sustainability goals.
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