Increasingly, what makes the world turn are data centers and other energy-intensive commercial properties. These structures require enormous amounts of energy to function, which affects the national power grid and leaves huge carbon footprints. It’s not a sustainable system. 

Microgrids are taking center stage as an energy-crisis solution used by commercial real estate (CRE). Microgrids offer them the chance to provide both clean, reliable backup power to their facilities and offset their costs by selling power back to the grid. themselves with renewable energy.

The Energy Problem for CREs

Allan Schurr, the chief commercial officer of one of the leading microgrid companies in the country, Enchanted Rock, states that a data center on the large side just two or three years ago needed no more than 100 MWs to function. To operate now, a data center must multiply that by 10.

And it’s not just a few data centers needing power throughout the country. More seem to spring up every day to manage the increasing call for artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence chips are very powerful, but they also need a lot of energy to function.

“When you add more and more racks because there’s such a demand for this business function, that’s when you get these GW-scale data centers,” Schurr noted. He predicts that in just a few years, any large data center will need to have its own microgrids before it’s allowed to connect to the central power grid.

Many businesses are already anticipating that eventuality by having grids installed for on-site power generation.  

Major CREs Are Putting Their Money on Microgrids

Enchanted Rock has surged ahead as one of the leading providers of microgrids. The company has already offered its services to a variety of CREs in Texas, California, and other states. One of its largest customers, however, is Microsoft. In 2022, the company hired Enchanted Rock to help it with a major data center project in California. 

Microsoft wants to create the biggest microgrid that will be supported fully by renewable natural gas. This project is part of the technology giant’s attempt to become carbon-negative by 2030.

Enchanted Rock will provide backup power to a data center in San Jose, California, to guarantee continuous operation while at the same time reducing emissions by as much as 96%. The project will be live by 2026. 

A challenge that some of these large companies face is operational and installation costs, but Enchanted Rock has already thought of this. It offers energy-as-a-service arrangements that can help companies better manage costs while not being considered a serious expense when it comes to balance sheets. 

Enchanted Rock provides their energy-as-a-service agreements as turnkey solutions, and Schurr has seen that many businesses are now choosing to own their microgrid equipment. This simplifies the problem in instances when a client is in a triple-net lease. 

Companies like Enchanted Rock strive to make the adaptation of microgrids as simple and painless, budget-wise, as possible. 

Learn more about how CREs can benefit from the transition to microgrid systems by reading the original article at Commercial Property Executive.