ISTANBUL

Google has signed the Asia-Pacific region’s first geothermal agreement with Taiwan, the tech giant announced Tuesday.

The initial projects are expected to add 10 megawatts of “always on” power to the grid and “help catalyze Taiwan’s geothermal market,” a Google statement said.

Geothermal energy has the potential to offer “round-the-clock” power for places like Taiwan due to its location along the Pacific Ring of Fire, which allows it to harness underground heat to generate clean electricity, the statement said.

"Taiwan has access to substantial geothermal resources, offering stable and reliable baseload power to complement variable renewable energy technologies like solar and wind," it added.

Google also announced plans to collaborate with Australia on new research aimed at advancing geothermal energy development in the region.

The tech giant previously signed Taiwan’s first corporate power purchase agreement for solar energy in 2019.