Overview
- Bloomberg reported Wednesday, echoed by Reuters and others, that Microsoft is considering delaying or dropping its 2030 hourly clean-power pledge, with talks ongoing and no final decision, while a spokesperson said it still seeks to meet annual matching.
- The 100/100/0 target requires clean energy to match each hour of use on the same grid, unlike annual accounting that can count power bought at different times.
- Microsoft’s AI push is lifting power needs, with about $190 billion planned through year-end, new data center capacity rising by roughly 1 gigawatt every three months, and more than 40 gigawatts of renewables under contract.
- To lock in reliable supply, the company has turned to steady sources, including a Constellation deal tied to Three Mile Island and a proposed West Texas natural gas project with Chevron and Engine No. 1 that could reach 5 gigawatts.
- Company emissions are up about 23% since late 2022 as peers also rise, and a pullback from hourly matching could change how data centers are sold to communities and how firms define credible climate goals in the AI era.