The focus is on Google’s data center operating rules

Google may have signed off on President Trump Toothless power pledgeBut it is clear that the company began working months ago on a framework for operating its data centers.

Google said Thursday it will work with Michigan’s DTE to add 2.7 gigawatts of “new resources” in suburban Detroit to power a new data center in the area. Some details are still vague at this point, but the deal mimics one of them Last month it signed with Xcel Energy To build a data center in Minnesota. This is how Google will develop new capabilities for its future data centers.

The new plan includes 1.6 gigawatts of solar, 400 megawatts of four-hour energy storage, 50 megawatts of long-duration energy storage, and 300 megawatts of “additional clean resources,” which is a hackneyed way of saying anything from wind and hydro to nuclear and geothermal.

TechCrunch sent a number of questions to Google’s PR folks, and while they responded with some details, there are clearly a lot of suggestions that haven’t been fleshed out or fully announced yet. Meaning: Does “clean resources” include natural gas? We have not received a response to this yet.

The remaining 350MW of the 2.7GW deal will be covered by demand response, when large electricity users reduce their usage for short periods of time. What form that will take remains to be seen. Google may be looking for companies that are willing to restore their electricity needs at certain times, or that will turn off their data centers when the grid is stressed.

The DTE deal will also use Google’s Clean Transport Tariff, which has been improving over the past year or so. The tariff was previously used in Google’s deal with Xcel Energy. Its purpose is to allow Google to pay a premium to decide what types of energy it wants to deploy while also encouraging utilities to incorporate these technologies into their long-term planning. Previous instruments such as power purchase agreements were often treated by utilities as one-time instruments.

Google also said it is offering a $10 million energy impact fund aimed at reducing utility bills, including by insulating homes. It looks a lot like energy efficiency programs run by utilities, just with Google’s name on it. We will have to see whether $10 million is enough to allay ordinary people’s concerns about rising electricity prices.

This is the second Bring Your Own Power package promoted by Google, though it’s unlikely to be the last. In many ways, it’s not that different from how the company has operated in the past. Sure, the tariff is relatively new, but Google has been investing in or developing new generating capabilities ever since pledge Seven years ago to use 100% carbon-free energy.

The difference is that these projects were announced on their own timelines. Now, we’re seeing the opposite, as energy projects are being announced in the pipeline alongside the new data center. Smart marketing or something more? We’ll know in a few years.