Key facts
- Meta has withdrawn from the RE100 initiative, a corporate renewable energy project.
- The company has invested in at least a dozen natural gas power plants over the past year.
- Meta plans to build 10 natural gas power plants for its Hyperion data center, generating 7.5 gigawatts.
- Meta states it remains committed to matching its data center electricity usage with 100% clean and renewable energy.
- Competitors Apple, Google, and Microsoft remain members of the RE100 initiative.
Meta has withdrawn from the RE100, a global initiative for companies committed to 100% renewable energy, after a decade of membership. This decision comes as the technology giant accelerates its investment in natural gas power plants to meet the energy demands of its expanding AI data centers. While Meta asserts its continued commitment to sourcing 100% clean and renewable energy for its operations, its significant reliance on natural gas, which still produces considerable pollution, has drawn criticism and questions about its definition of 'clean energy'.
The company's departure from RE100, confirmed by a spokesperson as mutual, occurred as the initiative, run by The Climate Group, updated its guidance to enforce more rigorous reporting on renewable energy progress. Meta's competitors, including Apple, Google, and Microsoft, remain members of the group. Meta's strategy involves funding the construction of numerous natural gas power plants, including a substantial project in Louisiana that will generate 7.5 gigawatts of electricity, enough to power a state like South Dakota.
While Meta can utilize environmental attribute certificates to claim renewable energy usage, the company's substantial investment in natural gas infrastructure marks it as a significant player in this area, even as other tech firms explore more stringent hourly matching or pairing renewables with battery storage. The timing of Meta's exit from the voluntary industry group, amid its large-scale fossil fuel investments, makes the move particularly noteworthy.