Google, KKR to invest $400 mn on solar projects

Internet giant Google and investment firm KKR will invest $400 million in six solar plants in California and Arizona, the companies announced Thursday.

The plants are currently being developed and are expected to be operational by January 2014. They will be managed by Recurrent Energy, a California solar developer.

The companies plan to sell the electricity to municipal users and local utilities, including Southern California Edison. Five of the plants are in Southern California and the sixth is in Arizona.

A Google spokeswoman said the total investment in the projects is $400 million, but the exact breakdown between the companies was not disclosed.

The three firms in December 2011 announced a separate plan to build four solar plants near Sacramento, California.

Google said it has invested more than $1 billion in renewable energy projects.

Google's head of corporate finance Koho Ako-Asare said the company is working to create "a clean energy future" where "renewable energy is abundant, accessible and affordable," according to a post on the company's official website.