"We're trying to set an example and showing what's possible in our challenging environment."

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To provide accountability, the company has signed up to the RE100 partnership to demonstrate the shift for both direct and indirect power demand, such as the servers it uses from Amazon Web Services. AWS is at about 50 per cent renewable for its power supplies and is on track to reach 100 per cent too, Mr Cannon-Brookes said.

Atlassian will join other Australian companies aiming to use only solar and wind or other renewable sources of electricity.

Bank Australia, for instance, said last week it would source all its power from clean energy by next year. The local arm of confectionary maker Mars said last May it would secure all its electricity from renewable sources by 2019 to meet its annual demand of about 100 gigawatt-hours.

Mr Cannon-Brookes said he couldn't reveal Atlassian's power usage but said "we've factored in a significant amount of growth" for the coming years, making it "a pretty ambitious target".

The Netherlands, India and the Philippines are among the nations where Atlassian has operations. "Internally I'm pushing to do it earlier - we'll see how we go," he said.

The move to clean energy would have a "modest cost" but would bring other benefits.

"We're big on social responsibility ... it will help us attract better employees," Mr Cannon-Brookes said.

Atlassian will also stress energy efficiency by reviewing heating and air-conditioning use in its buildings, and installing energy-saving LED lighting and other devices to minimise power use.

In 2017, the billionaire famously challenged fellow tech tycoon Elon Musk to build the world's largest battery in South Australia. The $90 million 100-megawatt storage device has since proved highly successful, clawing back much, if not all of its outlay.