FEATURE : GREEN DATA CENTRES owners and operators to get ahead of the curve when it comes to energy scarcity and powering increasing amounts of space .
“ Though the European market ’ s continued boom is undoubtedly good news , certain worrying trends can be identified by delving through the data behind this continued growth ,” said Durie . “ Nowhere is this more apparent than in the fact that the FLAP markets have experienced its two largest quarters for take-up in the second half of the year , with 105MW in Q3 and 96MW in Q4 respectively . Taking this into account , the question must be asked – how is all this going to be powered ?
“ Such scale , coupled with the fact the CBRE has anticipated higher costs caused by energy price rises , will pose challenges for those building new facilities to service this growth . Namely , data centre stakeholders may find themselves unable to power expanded halls or increased take-up in existing premises due to grid constraints .”
The effects of grid strain can be clearly seen in Amsterdam , where a moratorium has been in place since July 2019 on data centre construction in both the city and nearby Haarlemmermeer ’ s municipalities . Though not as extreme , other areas are experiencing similar issues . For example , the CBRE has identified government-imposed restrictions on build activity as a key challenge for the rapidly expanding Frankfurt market .
Such limitations highlight the role decentralised energy solutions could play in meeting data centre construction demand . Specifically , by using generator technology as a bridging solution during both the project and when facilities come online , power provision can be maintained while grid capacity is increased for these new or expanded facilities .
“ Looked upon from the outside , it could be argued that the European data centre sector is experiencing what might be regarded as an enviable problem ,” said Durie . “ Yet this remains a pressing concern and one
that must be addressed if the FLAP markets ’ upward trajectory is to continue unabated . The provision of green distributed energy equipment on hired basis is one such way to bridge this gap between ever-growing data centre demand and an increasingly unreliable and constrained grid infrastructure .
“ Whether through the use of alternative fuels such as HVO , alongside Stage V generators for larger sites or hybrid battery systems for smaller loads , the technology is already there to sustainably assist this transition . Considering these facilities are increasingly situated in built-up areas subject to emissions controls , this is also a vital concern .” p
Billy Durie , Global Sector Head for Data Centres at Aggreko
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