Google's data center energy use doubled in four years

Core Insights - Google's data centers have seen a dramatic increase in electricity consumption, more than doubling from 14.4 million megawatt-hours in 2020 to 30.8 million megawatt-hours in 2024, indicating a growth of over 113% in just four years [1][2][5] - Data centers are responsible for 95.8% of Google's total electricity usage, highlighting the significant impact of this segment on the company's overall energy consumption [2] - The company's power usage effectiveness (PUE) has improved only marginally over the past decade, reaching 1.09 in 2024, suggesting that further efficiency gains may be challenging to achieve [6] Energy Strategy - Google is committed to using only carbon-free electricity sources, which has led to substantial investments in various energy technologies, including geothermal, nuclear fission, and fusion [7][10][15] - The company has made significant renewable energy purchases, including 600 megawatts of solar capacity in South Carolina and 700 megawatts in Oklahoma, as part of a broader $20 billion investment in carbon-free power plants [11][12] - Currently, about 66% of Google's data center electricity consumption is matched to the hour with carbon-free sources, but there are regional disparities, with Latin America achieving 92% while the Middle East and Africa only reach 5% [14]