According to a blog post written by the technology giant’s head of advanced energy, Michael Terrell, the move will harness its electricity growth for “smarter utilisation of US electricity systems”.

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“Demand response enables our data centres to be valuable assets for the power grid. Our ability to shift or reduce our energy demand can help utility companies balance supply and demand and plan for future capacity needs,” he said.

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“These agreements create a smart solution to make the electricity systems that serve our data centres more affordable and reliable.”

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Additionally, Google also expanded its partnerships with Indiana Michigan Power and Tennessee Valley Authority, alongside new deals with Entergy Arkansas, Minnesota Power, and DTE Energy.

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As a result, this move will incorporate demand response as a key resource for new data centres to connect more rapidly to local grids, the company stated.

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“Demand response can be deployed quickly to bridge the gap between short-term load growth and the longer timelines required to build new clean generation and storage solutions,” Terrell said.

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“This demand-side flexibility, along with other new resources we’re bringing to the system – such as solar, geothermal and long-duration energy storage projects – enables valuable capacity for grids while helping our utility partners support reliability.”

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He added: “By allowing utilities to cover peak demand periods with existing grid resources, demand response can help optimise the build-out of new transmission and power plants.””

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Meanwhile, Google also revealed it will continue working with utilities, regulators, and initiatives like EPRI DCFlex to expand demand response.

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