Last week we discussed how companies like Google and Microsoft have the ability to disrupt and change industries at scale. The timing could not have been better. With the announcement today of Google's $200 million investment in the Atlantic Wind Connection Project, we see this concept in action. Upon completion, the transmission project would allow energy generated by wind farms located off the Mid-Atlantic coast to be used in powering homes from Virginia to New York.
One of the major problems facing the wind power industry in the US is the lack of up-to-date power transmission lines. The capital investment costs of laying down new lines and building wind farms are enormous and contributed to the demise of T. Boone Pickens' planned wind farm in the Texas panhandle last year. With weak financial backing, the US is falling behind China and Europe in its development and use of wind energy.
Now we have Google stepping in and providing the financial push to get the ball rolling. Quoting one wind industry analyst, "The North American wind industry hasn’t had any players involved with the motivation and financial heft to really move this market forward. Google could play that role."
So what exactly is Google's motivation? Promote alternative energy? Maximize profit? World domination through energy control?
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