Google Invests $145M into Solar

Google has long been an investor in the “worthwhile”, and they are proving it by dropping $145 million onto a project which will convert a field once used for oil drilling into a clean energy solar power plant. The organization in charge of the project is SunEdison, which is contributing nearly 250,000 solar panels as well as various research to further aid the industry.

Once complete, the solar plant, located just north of Los Angeles, is due to pump out enough energy to power 10,000 homes and has the potential to bring 650 jobs to the area. SunEdison says the plant should be operational near the end of 2014, and Google has plans to continue making investment just as influential for years to come.

So far, the Internet search company has contributed more than $1.5 billion to the solar industry by way of 16 other projects around the country. Needless to say, Google alone has been a substantial support of alternative energies, but just where do these investments go?

One of the primary areas such investments help with is that of energy storage. The more effective a panel is at storing energy, the more valuable it is, and this has been a driving force for many solar energy engineers. Major investments like Google’s help push increased energy storage and overall value, making the cost all the more justifiable. The solar revolution is constantly spurring private companies and legislators into action, and the progress so far has been more than substantial.