AirTrunk to procure power from ib vogt solar project in Malaysia

Hyperscale data centre company AirTrunk has inked a deal to procure power from a 29.99-MW solar farm to be built by German solar developer ib vogt GmbH in Malaysia.

AirTrunk today boasted of having signed the first data centre renewable energy virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) under Malaysia’s Corporate Green Power Programme (CGPP).

Subscribe for Renewables Now's Corporate PPA Newsletter here for free!

The CGPP is an initiative of the Malaysian Energy Commission which allocated a quota of a total of 800 MW of solar capacity, seeking to promote VPPAs. The German company is currently developing the plant under the programme which allows for each developer to apply for up to 30 MW upon securing an off-taker.

“As we continue to drive digitalisation in Malaysia through the development of our 150MW AirTrunk JHB1 data centre, this initiative marks yet another important step in our roadmap to achieve Net Zero and decarbonise APJ’s [Asia Pacific & Japan] electricity grid,” AirTrunk’s CTO Damien Spillane said.

Ib vogt is set to start construction works on the site in mid-2024.

The Malaysian contract comes after, in December, AirTrunk signed up to buy electricity from a 25-MW solar park being developed by OX2 AB in New South Wales, Australia, to match Google’s local power demand.

In August, the German company announced a plan for a 30-MW/40-MWp solar project in Malaysia for a local subsidiary of Korean rechargeable batteries maker Samsung SDI Co Ltd.