Google turns up investment in solar power

Google on Tuesday ramped up its investment in clean energy by backing the construction of solar panels that will feed electricity to California's power grid. The Internet giant announced that it is pumping $94 million into Recurrent Energy projects near the state's capitol of Sacramento, raising its investments in Earth-friendly power generation to $915 million. "We believe investing in the renewable energy sector makes business sense and hope clean energy projects continue to attract new sources of capital to help the world move towards a more sustainable energy future," Google assistant treasurer Axel Martinez said in a blog post. Backing Recurrent marked Google's first time investing in large scale solar photovoltaic power plants that generate energy for the US electric grid instead of on individual rooftops, according to Martinez. The projects were expected to generate enough electricity to meet the demands of more than 13,000 homes. Google has also committed to funding to help more than 10,000 homeowners install solar panels on home rooftops. California-based Google said that it was joining investment firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Company to back the Recurrent projects.