Having launched its first test photovoltaic farm for a server-hosting facility in April, Wirtualna Polska is acquiring a large 3-megawatt solar farm in Lower Silesia. Green electricity generated from actual own production already covers almost half of WP’s power consumption needs for running its server-hosting facilities. The acquisition marks another step towards the achievement of climate neutrality, an objective called for in WP’s strategy. From 2023, all Wirtualna Polska’s data centers will be fully zero-emission.
This second photovoltaic farm in WP’s asset portfolio is located in Lower Silesia and covers an aver of over 5 hectares. The total capacity of its three generating units is 3 MW. On 2 July 2021, Wirtualna Polska entered into a contract for the acquisition of a 100% stake in the project. The total value of the deal was PLN 12.4 million.
“Poland’s generation of electricity in coal-fired units destroys the environment to a degree unsurpassed by other European countries. We encourage everyone to invest in green energy projects in Poland, because such investments generate much greater benefits for the planet especially in our country in comparison to other European nations,” says Jacek Świderski, CEO of Wirtualna Polska Holding S.A.
“The photovoltaic farm in Lower Silesia is the outcome of our long-term endeavors and experience in this industry. The installation is built of state-of-the-art tested components and is very efficient. As a result, the farm is capable of achieving not only environmental objectives but also of meeting our business goals. We are proud that our company has been acquired by such a cutting-edge and highly recognizable brand as Wirtualna Polska,” says Marcin Ściążko, project developer.
The investment in renewable energy is a major component of the “WP Naturally” project. In April, Wirtualna Polska launched a test photovoltaic farm on the roof of one of its sever-hosting facilities. Since the beginning of 2021, all energy purchased by the company has been covered by guarantees of origin from renewable sources.
On the WP Home Page, a meter shows by how much CO2 emissions dropped in comparison to 2020 owing to WP’s operation of solar farms and shift towards zero emissions. In addition, users of the WP Home Page and over 20 services owned by Wirtualna Polska may switch to dark mode. It enables, among other benefits, reduced energy consumption in devices using OLED displays, for example in mobile phones.
Wirtualna Polska is a technological holding group involved in media, advertising and e-commerce business. It owns the WP Home Page and operates specialized topical websites such as money.pl, WP SportoweFakty and autocentrum.pl. In the e-commerce sector, WP operates in the areas of leisure travel (wakacje.pl, nocowanie.pl), fashion (domodi.pl and allani.pl), interior design (homebook.pl), house design (extradom.pl), financial services (totalmoney.pl) and automotive (superauto.pl). According to a Mediapanel survey, in May 2021, 21.8 million Poles used WP’s online products.