Meta this week announced seven new solar projects in Georgia and Tennessee totaling 720MWAC.

Silicon Ranch is partnering with Walton Electric Membership Corporation (EMC) and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to supply renewable power to serve Meta’s data centers in Georgia and the Tennessee Valley, respectively.

As part of the agreements, Silicon Ranch will fund, build, own, operate, and maintain the solar facilities over the life of each of the seven projects.

“We are proud of the work we have done with Walton EMC and TVA to accelerate the transition to renewables in Georgia and the Tennessee Valley,” said Urvi Parekh, Head of Renewable Energy at Meta. “As we continue to support our global operations with 100 percent renewable energy, we are pleased to expand our partnership with Silicon Ranch, a trusted partner who shares our commitment to have a positive impact on the communities where we locate.”

In Georgia, Walton EMC recently executed contracts with Silicon Ranch on behalf of Meta for three new solar facilities totaling 560MWAC; Silicon Ranch will work with Walton EMC to deliver projects in each of the next three years to support Meta’s operations.

TVA recently signed agreements with Silicon Ranch on behalf of Meta for four new solar facilities in Tennessee totaling 160MWAC under TVA’s Green Invest program; again, Silicon Ranch will partner with TVA and local power companies to deliver all four projects in 2024.

“Silicon Ranch is honored by the confidence and trust that Meta continues to place in our company to execute on their behalf, and we are grateful to be part of this compelling economic development story with them as well as with our utility partners Walton EMC and TVA,” said Reagan Farr, president and CEO of Silicon Ranch. “Meta’s commitment to support their operations with 100 percent renewable energy is directly responsible for our own commitment to invest more than $2.3 billion across more than a dozen rural communities in Georgia, Tennessee, and Kentucky. As a company that calls this region home, we look forward to being active members of each community for decades to come.”

Meta is partnering with Silicon Ranch on a total of 16 solar facilities with a capacity of approximately 1,500 MWAC. Eight of the projects are now operational, generating approximately 630 MWAC. It has previously signed deals with TVA and EMC across Georgia, Tennesee, and Kentucky.

Meta has data centers in Newton County in Georgia [as well as a second project in development], and Gallatin, Tennessee. It operates facilities in neighboring states in Huntsville, Alabama, and Forest City, North Carolina.

Silicon Ranch is close to completing two more solar projects set to serve Meta’s operations; the 125MWAC DeSoto I Solar Farm in partnership with Walton EMC in Lee County, Georgia, and the 70MWAC McKellar Solar Farm with TVA in Madison County, Tennessee.

“As an electric cooperative, Walton EMC is driven by our ‘concern for community’ and our devotion to serving the needs of our member-owners, and our partnership with Meta and Silicon Ranch enables us to honor our commitments to these principles and values,” said Ronnie Lee, CEO of Walton EMC.

Doug Perry, senior vice president of Commercial Energy Solutions for TVA, added: “TVA is building the energy system of the future, and this public-private partnership with Meta and Silicon Ranch demonstrates the strength of TVA’s public power model to attract capital investment and high-quality jobs into the communities we serve while helping businesses meet their sustainability goals.”

This week DCD exclusively reported that Meta was scaling back around a dozen data center development projects as it looks to refocus its infrastructure on AI-centric hardware.