On February 24, local time, Google announced plans to build a new data center in Pine Island, Minnesota, USA. To ensure that the electricity demand for the project does not drive up local residents’ electricity bills, Google reached a clean energy agreement with the energy company Xcel Energy. Partner Form Energy will equip the Xcel Energy grid with 1,400 MW of wind power and 200 MW of solar power, connected to a 300 MW / 30 MWh iron-air battery energy storage system.
The most notable aspect of this project is its accompanying energy storage system—a 300 MW / 30 MWh iron-air battery provided by Form Energy. Based on storage capacity, this will be the world’s largest battery energy storage project to date, offering a new model for tech companies to utilize intermittent renewable energy to ensure a continuous power supply in the AI era.
The core of this technology lies in the iron-air battery developed by Form Energy, whose working principle is fundamentally different from mainstream lithium-ion batteries. The battery contains thousands of iron particles, storing energy through a chemical process of “reversible rusting”: during discharge, the iron reacts with oxygen from the air to form rust and release electricity; during charging, external electricity is used to reverse the rust back into iron, re-storing energy and releasing oxygen.
According to the plan, Form Energy is expected to begin delivering battery modules to Xcel Energy in 2028, with all products manufactured at its “Form Factory 1” plant in Weirton, West Virginia. This project also marks Google’s first data center in Minnesota, located on a 480-acre plot of land in Pine Island.
Currently, the agreement is pending formal review and approval by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission.
