A Swedish data center with zero environmental impact will heat local households

Falu Energi & Vatten and EcoDC AB have launched the construction of the world's first data center with zero environmental impact. In any case, this is how developers position their project. The partners also promise that their data center, named EcoDataCenter, will include the first twenty of the world's most secure data centers. During the construction of EcoDataCenter, it is planned to use Schneider Electric equipment, which will ensure the introduction of energy-efficient solutions in the infrastructure of the facility.

It is worth noting that at the moment, the ICT sector requires about 10% of all the energy generated in the world. Despite the introduction of energy-efficient equipment, data centers are becoming an increasingly expensive pleasure, because a data center of a large corporation can consume the same amount of energy, or even more than a relatively small city. In addition, the equipment of the data center generates heat, which, for the most part, is wasted, simply released into the atmosphere. Cooling data centers requires a lot of energy, especially if the object is located in a relatively warm climate zone.

To avoid all the problems mentioned above, the creators of EcoDataCenter deploy their data center in Sweden, in one of the coolest regions of the country with moderate fluctuations in daily and seasonal temperatures. According to the authors of the Data Center Risk Index report, Sweden is the third in the ranking of countries most suitable for hosting a data center.

EcoDataCenter Project

The authors of the project decided to place their data center in the city of Falun, next to the power station, which is already connected to the local energy system (including the city heating system). This system received the Global District Energy Climate Award in 2013. Due to its proximity to the power plant and heating infrastructure, the data center will be able to transfer excess heat to the heating system of the city’s houses in winter, and receive additional energy from the power plant (excess steam will be used) in the summer. “Summer Energy” will be used to operate the data center cooling systems. In addition, it is planned to use direct cooling in the cool season.



As mentioned above, the data center will be one of the safest and most reliable in the world. So, the plan is to certify the facility according to the Uptime Institute Tier IV standard. The efficiency of the data center will be 100%.

In winter and summer, the data center will operate on "green" energy, including solar energy, wind, hydroelectricity, and biofuel. At some points, the use of a diesel engine is not ruled out, but this is a last resort, during periods with the lowest temperature.

EcoDataCenter Features

• The facility will consist of 3 separate buildings with a total area of ​​23250 square meters;
• Power - 18 MW;
• Uptime - 100%;
• Energy: wind, solar, hydropower, biofuel;
• Data Center Security Class: Tier IV;
• PUE - less than 1.15;
• Energy Efficiency Standard - Platinum (LEED);
• Green roof;
• The average annual temperature is 5 degrees Celsius;
• Transport infrastructure: 2 km to the highway, 2 hours by train to Stockholm, 25 km to the airport.