Page 24 - ARUBA TODAY

A24 TECHNOLOGY
Thursday 13 June 2019
Facebook invests in renewables with Texas solar project

By RUSSELL CONTRERAS It comes as Facebook bat-
Associated Press tles New Mexico regulators
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) over a new transmission
— Facebook is building a line to its data center in the
massive solar farm in West small town of Los Lunas.
Texas that’s believed to be State regulators last month
one of the largest solar proj- declined to reconsider their
ects in the nation and the decision for the largest util-
social media giant’s first ity to bill Facebook $39 mil-
direct investment in renew- lion for the transmission line.
able energy. They said ratepayers could
Boston-based renewable not be charged for the
energy developer Lon- project because the line
groad Energy recently an- wouldn’t benefit retail cus-
nounced it was partnering tomers.The Public Service
with Facebook on the $416 Co. of New Mexico said it’s
million project, just as Face- disappointed by the deci-
book is finishing construc- sion and is reviewing op-
tion of a data center near tions for how to proceed.
Albuquerque. The New Mexico data cen-
The Prospero Solar project ter is one of seven such
just north of Odessa, Tex- sites for Facebook, and
as, will have a capacity of includes six buildings for
379 megawatts, which is In this April 30, 2019, file photo, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg makes the keynote speech at F8, data storage. It is situated
enough to power around Facebook’s developer conference in San Jose, Calif. on a patch of desert at the
72,000 homes based on the Associated Press edge of Los Lunas, which
national average, the Solar Park in New York City. ergy. It makes good busi- solar projects to support its lies just beyond the edge of
Energy Industries Associa- Ben Inskeep, a research ness sense.” data centers. They house New Mexico’s largest met-
tion said. analyst for EQ Research, a Shell Energy North America tens of thousands of com- ropolitan area and along
The project goes beyond North Carolina-based re- and Facebook will share puter servers, which are the Rio Grande.
Facebook’s goal to use re- newable energy consulting the power generated by linked to the outside world Each of the data center’s
newable energy to power firm, said it makes sense for the solar farm. through fiber-optic cables. buildings is roughly the size
its data centers, where the Facebook to invest in solar “Facebook is excited to be “Our data centers are al- of four football fields and
social media giant stores power because renewable one of the first companies ready some of the most en- has several “data halls,”
photos, videos and other energy is becoming more to use a direct investment ergy efficient in the world, or darkened, vast rooms
information that people affordable and its data to meet our renewable and last year we set a goal where Facebook plans to
post on the platform. centers have huge operat- energy goals,” company for all our data centers and store dozens of rows of tow-
Prospero Solar is expected ing costs. energy strategy manager offices to use 100% renew- ering servers. Two of those
to be completed next year “West Texas has some of Peter Freed said in a state- able energy by 2020,” Zuck- halls are now in operation,
and will take up around 7 the best solar resources in ment. erberg wrote on his person- while construction that be-
square miles (18 square ki- the nation,” Inskeep said. CEO Mark Zuckerberg an- al Facebook page. “These gan more than two years
lometers) — more than five “So it’s not about saying nounced in April that Face- new solar projects will help ago will continue until 2023,
times the size of Central you support renewable en- book was building six new us reach that goal.” the company said.q

Uber tests drone food delivery,

launches new autonomous SUV

will hand-deliver the meal from the tests will help with backup system will immedi-
to the customer. Uber’s planned aerial ride- ately act to bring the car to
In the future, the company sharing network. a stop. Various sensors will
wants to land drones atop Also Wednesday, Uber an- allow Uber’s self-driving sys-
parked vehicles near de- nounced that it would work tem to safely operate and
livery locations and secure with Volvo Cars to build a maneuver in urban areas,
them to the vehicle for the vehicle that comes off the the company said.
final mile of the delivery. assembly line capable of Uber and Volvo Cars part-
Last year Uber and the city driving autonomously. nered in September 2016.
This undated product image provided by Volvo Cars shows the of San Diego won a bid The ride-hailing company’s This is the third car they’ve
Volvo XC90 SUV. from the U.S. Federal Avia- self-driving system will be developed together.
Associated Press tion Administration to test installed in production ver- Volvo says it plans to use a
WASHINGTON (AP) — Uber livery times. It works this food delivery by air. sions of the Volvo XC90 similar vehicle to introduce
is testing restaurant food way: Workers at a restau- “We’ve been working SUV. The vehicle’s steering its own self-driving cars in
deliveries by drone. rant load the meal into closely with the FAA to en- and braking systems are the early 2020s.
The company’s Uber Eats a drone and it takes off, sure that we’re meeting re- designed for computer Uber made the announce-
unit began the tests in San tracked and guided by a quirements and prioritizing rather than human control, ment at its third-annual
Diego with McDonald’s new aerospace manage- safety,” Luke Fischer, head including several backup Uber Elevate Summit.
and plans to expand to ment system. of flight operations at Uber systems for both steering The announcements came
other restaurants later this The drone then meets an Elevate, said in a statement and braking functions and on a day with a lot of activ-
year. Uber says the service Uber Eats driver at a drop- Wednesday. The company battery backup power. If ity in autonomous vehicle
should decrease food de- off location, and the driver said the knowledge it gains the primary systems fail, the technology.q