Strategically located in Council Bluffs, our Iowa-based Omaha - Council Bluffs (OCB1) data center is now powered by 100% renewable electricity. We are proud to announce this achievement that was made possible through a green tariff with our local utility, MidAmerican, and their GreenAdvantage program.
Green tariffs are one of our most desirable renewable electricity instruments because they check all our boxes - additional (the project would not have happened otherwise), regional (contributing to the same grid where the electricity is used), and bundled (where delivery of power remains "bundled" to renewable energy certificates). MidAmerican's GreenAdvantage program incorporates both wind and solar electricity projects.
With this announcement, Omaha - Council Bluffs, a modern facility that supports hybrid cloud workloads and allows customers to leverage long haul fiber and cloud connectivity, becomes our second North American data center to operate on 100% renewable electricity (the other is DFW3 in Allen, Texas). This recent effort not only moves us closer to our climate-neutral by 2030 goal but also aligns with our customers' ambitious climate objectives.
Aside from the obvious benefit of reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, increasing our renewable electricity brings about some additional perks that support our long-term resilience. By eliminating our reliance on fossil fuels, both we and our customers are shielded from climate-related risks like potential carbon taxes or fuel price volatility in the electricity market.
Moreover, renewable electricity contributes to our water conservation strategy and goals. While our Council Bluffs facility doesn't consume water for cooling, we must also consider embodied water - the water embedded in our electricity supply chain. By transitioning to renewable electricity, we are reducing our responsibility for water consumed through traditional thermoelectric electrical generation (like fossil fuel or nuclear generation).
As we continue our journey towards decreasing our industry's environmental impact and promoting a more resilient future, Omaha-Council Bluffs is indicative of our dedication to a carbon-free energy landscape. While we are currently operating on 100% renewable electricity at all our data centers in Europe, we still have work to do within our North American portfolio and we look forward to making this transition as we approach 2030.
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