Issuu

TEAM DATACENTERED PUBLISHER

LOCATION

Dutch Data Center Association (DDA)

Dutch Data Center Association Herengracht 342 H 1016 CG Amsterdam

EDITOR IN CHIEF

The Netherlands

Mels Dees

ADVERTISEMENTS ART DIRECTOR Asha Garib

For inquiries about advertisements, please contact info@datacentered.net

MARKETING & PR

SUPPORTED BY: 2G Energy, ABATO Motoren B.V., ABB, Aggrekko, All Rack, AlternativeHEAT,

Zoë Derksen

Ampowr, APAC airconditioning, Arcadis, Arup, Apx, ATC, ATS Global

Claire van der Bij

Systems, Beveco, Blygold, Brady, Boon Edam, Bosal, CANS, Carrier,

Tijn Gerhards

CargoSense Logistics, CBRE, CF Logistics, Chatsworth Products,

Nour Farrouh

Circular IT group, Commscope, Conteg, Corning, CSB Energy Solutions, Danfoss, Data Ports Eemshaven, Day Wireless Systems, DCByte, DC Connect, Deerns, Delta Electronics, DGMR, Drees en Sommer, Eaton,

CONTRIBUTORS

Elinex, Enersys, Enterprise Ireland, EPI, ERIKS NL, Exide, First-Case, Fluor,

Stijn Grove, Kees Verhoeven, Natascha Geraedts, Sjoerd Vrijburg, Florens

Fogtec, Forehand, Fortop, GBE Converge, Georg Fischer AG, Goodman,

van den Bosch, Nardi Polak, Paul Kunneman, Youp Overtoom, Michael

Grundfos, Hanab Energy Solutions, Heijmans, Hochtief Infrastructure

Spaargaren, Jeroen Stevens, Jasper Mattijssen (Stroomkr8), Nasim

GmbH Nederland, Honeywell, Huawei, Hug Engineering, IMI Climate

Mohamedajoeb (Stroomkr8), Michiel de van der Schueren, Phaedra

Control, INNOVATE, Jan Krediet, Kelvion Limited, Kenter, Knauff, Kobespa,

Kortekaas, Piotr Kowalski, Ian Whitfield, Chris Talago, Andrew van der Haar,

Koninklijke van Twist, KSB, KWS Infra, Leviton, Loadwise, Logicall Supply

Jo-Ann Garbutt, Laura Beukers, Tijn Gerhards, Nour Farrouh.

Chain Solutions, Lucend, Maunt, Merford, Mirapath, Mitchell McDermott, Momenthesis B.V., Musashi Europe GmbH, Netceed, NLix, Nomios, Novetec B.V., Oleon, OptiFits, OronHalo, Panduit, Park Place Technologies,

ABOUT Datacentered is a publication of Dutch Data Center Association. No part of this publication may be reproduced and/or disclosed by print, photocopy, film or any other means without written permission from the publisher.

Paroc Panel System, Pathema, PB7, PM Group, Polyned, Promise Technology, R&M Europe, Rolls Royce, SADC, SALUTE, Schleifenbauer, Rehlko, Reichle & De Massari (R&M), Riello UPS, Rittal, Schneider Electric, Securitas, Siemens, Simac, Sims Lifecycle Services, Simstudio, Soben, Socomec, Spie, Stark Narrative, Switch Datacenters, Stroomkr8, STULZ, Teckentrup, Trescal, T&S Klimaattechniek, TSL, Turner & Townsend, Unica Datcenters, Vattenfall, Veko Lightsystems, Vertiv, Victaulic, Vipe Welding, Waterfall security, Wesco Anixter, Wilo Nederland BV, Workrate, Xeamos, Zwart Techniek.

YO UR WEEK LY P U LS E O N D I G I TA L INF R ASTRU CT U R E Stay ahead in data centers and digital infrastructure, not only through our magazine but also with our Weekly Pulse newsletter.

Every week, we deliver clear, relevant, technical updates straight to your inbox, no noise, just the news you need.

SCAN & SIGN UP NOW!

GET YOUR WEEKLY DOSE OF TECHNICAL INSIGHTS!

INTERVIEWS

ANALYSES

EUROPE GETS A NEW MAP OF DATA CENTER LOCATIONS

EVENTS

112

DATA CENTERS AND AGRICULTURE: A BATTLE FOR SCARCE LAND?

FROM LARGE SCALE CONSUMER TO SYSTEM PARTNER

116

Michael Spaargaren (Zwart Techniek)

Michiel de van der Schueren

102

(CBRE)

“FROM BACKUP POWER TO ENERGY RESILIENCE INTEGRATOR”

HEAT REUSE IS ABOUT MORE THAN TECHNOLOGY

DIGITAL SOVEREIGNTY REQUIRES MORE THAN A DUTCH DATA CENTER

ENERGY MARKET UPDATE Stroomkr8 (Q1 + Q2, 2026)

Jo-Ann Garbutt (EUDCA)

108

DATA AND ENERGY: TWO PILLARS OF THE DIGITAL ECONOMY Kees Verhoeven

DATA CENTER SECTOR EVENTS

EXPERT INSIGHTS

LIFESTYLE

ESSAY

NATASCHA GERAEDTS

STIJN GROVE

PIOTR KOWALSKI

JEROEN STEVENS

PHAEDRA KORTEKAAS

MICROGRID GIVES DATA CENTERS A NEW ROLE IN THE POWER GRID

PURE DC BUILDS ON YAS ISLAND FOR CLOUD AND AI

IT’S MUSIC, STUPID!

ICE BATTERY ALLOWS DATA CENTERS TO ‘BREATHE’ WITH THE ELECTRICITY GRID

AI BRINGS DATA CENTERS OFFSHORE

THE DATA CENTER THAT DISAPPEARED BENEATH THE WAVES

THE TIPPING POINT MORE THAN A BATTLE FOR HECTARES Sometimes a system appears to be in balance, even

whether artificial intelligence is a useful tool—that has

though the direction it will ultimately take remains

already been demonstrated. The more interesting

uncertain. Those are the moments that matter most. They

question is what happens to us when that tool begins to

do not mark an ending, but a transition—a point at which

take over parts of the thinking itself.

old certainties begin to fade and new choices shape the future. Today, our digital society finds itself at just such a

Opinions differ. Some see AI as the next logical step in

tipping point.

the long history of technological progress. Others argue that algorithms are making us intellectually complacent.

When Jean-Michel Jarre released Équinoxe in 1978,

We remember less because search engines remember

the digital revolution had barely begun. Yet the album

everything for us. We follow navigation systems without

sounded as though it had arrived from the future.

knowing the route ourselves. We ask software to

Équinoxe may not have been a digital album in the

summarise books we once read in full. Increasingly, we

technical sense, but it certainly was in spirit. It anticipated

are no longer facing a blank page, but editing a first draft

an era in which technology would become an increasingly

generated by a language model.

integral part of both our creative expression and our Perhaps, however, we are asking the wrong question. Every

society.

technological revolution has relieved people of certain Perhaps the debate itself has hardly changed. In 1978,

tasks. The printing press replaced generations of copyists.

people wondered whether electronic instruments would

Calculators reduced the need for mental arithmetic.

dehumanise music. Today, we ask whether artificial

Word processors made correction fluid and carbon

intelligence will dehumanise thinking. The technology has

paper obsolete. Yet none of these innovations stopped

changed; the underlying question has not.

us from thinking. They simply changed the way we think. New technologies reshape not only what we do, but also which human skills become most valuable.

Nor is that question confined to the arts. Writers, software developers, designers, researchers and journalists now work alongside AI every day. The real issue is no longer

THE POWER OF DATA CENTERS That is precisely why this discussion matters to the

That theme runs throughout this edition. Europe

data center industry. Almost every debate about AI

is striving for greater technological independence

focuses on models, applications, regulation or energy

while demand for computing capacity continues to

consumption. Beneath all of these developments,

outpace the availability of energy. New data center

however, lies an infrastructure that rarely receives

locations are increasingly determined by where power

the attention it deserves. Data centers provide the

is available. Flexibility, energy storage and intelligent

computing power on which this new society is being

power networks are becoming just as important as

built. Without resilient digital infrastructure, there is

processors and fibre connections. Behind each of these

no cloud, no AI and, ultimately, no digital sovereignty.

developments lies the same fundamental question: what kind of future do we want this technology to enable?

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HUMANS AND MACHINES Ultimately, the public debate on AI is about far more than software. It is about the relationship between humans and machines. About whether technology stimulates our curiosity or gradually replaces it. Whether creativity emerges from convenience or from effort. And whether intelligence is something we can outsource—or something we must continue to cultivate ourselves.

Perhaps we once again find ourselves at a moment when more than one future remains possible. Data centers will provide the energy, connectivity and computing power for whatever comes next. But the direction society ultimately takes will not be determined by algorithms. It will be determined by the people who choose how to use them. Mels Dees Editor-In-Chief

MICROGRID GIVES DATA CENTERS A NEW ROLE IN THE POWER GRID For Pure Data Centres, the microgrid in Dublin began as a response to a delayed grid connection. The company now sees the technology in a broader context: as a way for data centers to operate flexibly within an energy system increasingly challenged by grid congestion and fluctuating renewable generation.

Pure developed the data center on a brownfield site,

“It started out as a transition solution,” says Ian Whitfield,

formerly occupied by a distribution warehouse. A full

CTO of Pure Data Centres. A smaller version of the

connection to the Irish electricity grid, however, was

microgrid has now been operational for around 18

taking longer than anticipated. When new connections

months.

were subsequently largely put on hold, the microgrid evolved from an interim measure into the energy solution that allowed Pure to develop the site independently.

COMBINING GENERATION AND STORAGE The Dublin microgrid combines local electricity generation with battery storage and its own distribution system. Power is generated using natural gas from the gas network. According to Whitfield, Pure matches all of its gas consumption with certified biomethane.

For redundancy, Pure opted for dual-fuel engines rather than a separate layer of conventional backup generators. The same assets can run on either gas or liquid fuel. HVO is stored on site in case the gas supply is interrupted.

“Rather than replicating the generation with a backup set of generators, we’ve used an asset that can efficiently generate electricity from either gas or liquid fuel,” says Whitfield. Pure treats gas, too, as a utility that could potentially fail.

FROM CONSUMER TO PROSUMER Pure is promoting a different model, including in its discussions with the UK government. According to Chris Talago, Head of Corporate Affairs & Communications at Pure Data Centres, data centers are still often regarded as passive energy users, even though grid services could allow them to play an active role in the energy system.

Whitfield therefore prefers to describe them as ‘prosumers’ rather than consumers. “It’s very easy to see data centers as part of the problem,” says Talago. “Our view is that we can actually be part of the solution.”

In Ireland, that idea has practical implications. Renewable generation is sometimes curtailed when there is surplus electricity. “We can take some of that surplus energy to charge our batteries,” says Whitfield. At those times, Pure can reduce the amount of electricity it needs to generate itself.

Conversely, when the grid is under pressure, the data center can rely more heavily on its own generation capacity. This creates a fundamentally different relationship with the grid operator than a conventional connection.

FLEXIBILITY AS A REQUIREMENT Whitfield expects large new connections across Europe to become increasingly dependent on requirements for flexible capacity. Ireland is ahead of the curve, but he sees similar developments in countries including France and expects the Netherlands to move in the same direction.

“At times the system will want to share energy because it has a surplus. But at other times it will want data centers to generate their own power, so that system demand can be balanced more effectively.”

Whitfield also points to fault ride-through as a specific issue in Ireland where data centers with their own generation and storage can contribute. “We can help stabilise the grid and provide a more secure and available grid for all consumers in Ireland, not just data centers.”

CLOSER TO THE ENERGY SOURCE The growth of renewable generation also raises the question of whether new data centers should increasingly be located closer to energy sources. Whitfield sees opportunities in locations with abundant wind power. At the same time, a significant share of enterprise and public demand for digital infrastructure remains concentrated around major metropolitan areas.

“Part of the answer is co-location with renewable energy solutions,” says Whitfield. “Part of the answer is solving how we distribute the energy to the locations that need it most.” He sees a role for both closer interaction with the public grid and hybrid microgrids.

DATA CENTER AS CATALYST FOR A HEAT NETWORK In Dublin, waste heat is also intended to become part of the local energy infrastructure. Pure is working with a third party on a heat network that does not yet exist in the area. “We’ll become, if you like, the catalyst for a new heat network,” says Whitfield.

Potential users include local businesses and public facilities, including hospitals and a nearby aquatic centre. Residential heating could follow later, although Whitfield says this is more difficult to achieve.

What began in Dublin as a response to insufficient grid capacity has evolved into a way for Pure to interact far more actively with the electricity system. Whitfield sums up that shift in one phrase: “Prosumers rather than consumers.”

NATASCHA EVERSHEDS SUTHERLAND

GERAEDTS 18

BALANCE AND EQUILIBRIUM IN THE DATA CENTER SECTOR

“

THE QUESTION IS WHETHER WE CAN FIND AND HOLD A POINT OF BALANCE.

THE PULL OF DEMAND AND DISDAIN Our modern society and its electrification and digitalization are not abstract trends evolving somewhere else. Data centers are their physical embodiment, so it is no wonder that they now consume a share of national electricity that would have seemed inconceivable a decade ago. Against this sits the finite capacity of national grids as the existing transmission infrastructure was built

Twice a year, the Earth reaches a moment of perfect

for a different era. Balancing the data center sector’s

astronomical balance. The equinox, derived from the

appetite for electrons against the physical and regulatory

Latin words aequus (equal) and nox (night), marks the

constraints of the grid is perhaps (if not for sure) the

instant when day and night fall into near-equal measure.

defining challenge of this decade.

It is a fleeting equilibrium, a pivot between seasons.

Yet the same public that streams, scrolls and prompts

It strikes me that the data center sector stands at its own

AI models daily seems slow to connect any of this with

equinox moment. As an attorney advising developers

the building or “big box” down the road. Data centers,

on establishing data centers in the Netherlands, I see

it seems fair to say, still remain more of an unfamiliar

a landscape of opposing forces: growth and restraint,

curiosity than the digital equivalent of the power station

innovation and regulation, demand and physical limits,

or water treatment plant we rely on easily without a

public appetite and public concerns. These forces are

second thought. That leaves an intriguing question: why,

each pulling against the other. The question is whether we

given how central they have become to the way we live,

can find and hold a point of balance.

are we not all a little more ready to embrace them?

GROWTH, NET-ZERO AND A TIGHTENING REGULATORY MAZE

DIGITAL DEMAND, PHYSICAL LIMITS AND THE RHYTHM OF UPTIME

There is a clear tension in building more while pledging

It is funny that we speak of “the cloud” as though data

to consume less. Power purchase agreements, on-site

were weightless. Yet every byte is anchored to land,

renewables and circularity such as heat reuse and water

power, water and a global supply chain. Digital demand

stewardship, offer paths forward. Sustainability must now

is in principle infinite, while physical resources are not.

be woven into every planning permission from day one.

Like the equinox, the data center runs around the clock with no tolerance for interruption, yet this uptime must

When discussing the gap between fast-moving technology

and

slow-turning

regulation,

increasingly reconcile with the grid’s need for flexibility.

the

Netherlands are a good example. The Amsterdam

AN INFLECTION POINT

and Haarlemmermeer moratoria of 2019, the national hyperscale moratorium of 2022 and the Environment

The equinox is transient: within hours, the balance tips.

and Planning Act of 2024 each added new requirements

I believe that our sector stands at such a moment,

on top of an already-constrained grid. Anyone wanting

where regulatory frameworks, public perception and

to develop here now needs patience, agility, strategic

grid capacity will jointly decide whether growth and

foresight (and a good lawyer). Nevertheless the picture

responsibility will coexist or collide. Balance is never

does seem to be improving. Dutch authorities appear

a permanent state but it is a conscious, recurring

to have built up considerable expertise in recent years,

act. Finding our own equinox, between progress and

bringing somewhat greater clarity and consistency than

stewardship, between what we consume and what we

before. A more collaborative relationship with developers

are prepared to host, may well be the condition on which

seems, gradually, to be replacing what was once a more

our sector’s licence to operate ultimately depends.

defensive, arm’s-length dynamic. Natascha Geraedts Partner, Eversheds Sutherland

“

FINDING OUR OWN EQUINOX, BETWEEN PROGRESS AND STEWARDSHIP, BETWEEN WHAT WE CONSUME AND WHAT WE ARE PREPARED TO HOST, MAY WELL BE THE CONDITION ON WHICH OUR SECTOR’S LICENCE TO OPERATE ULTIMATELY DEPENDS.

DATA CENTERS AND AGRICULTURE: A BATTLE FOR SCARCE LAND? New data center developments are sparking debates over farmland and land use in several European countries. The question is whether the sector is genuinely competing with farmers for scarce land, or whether the debate is primarily driven by locations where multiple spatial interests converge. Research points to a far more nuanced picture.

According to Eurostat, agricultural land covers

Yet the data center sector in particular generates

approximately 156 million hectares, accounting for

considerable public debate. According to research by

more than 38 percent of the European Union’s total

German scholar Jochen Monstadt and his colleague

land area. This makes agriculture by far the largest land

Katherine Saltzman, published in the International Journal

user in Europe. No comparable European statistics exist

of Urban and Regional Research, this is because data

for the total land footprint of data centers. As a result,

centers occupy a unique position in the public debate.

researchers tend to focus on regional developments,

While digital services are often perceived as intangible,

where the spatial impact of new data center projects is

the infrastructure that supports them is highly visible in

most visible.

the physical landscape. Data centers make the physical side of the digital economy tangible.

NOT THE SIZE, BUT THE LOCATION According to researchers at the European think tank CERRE, public debate about data centers is driven less by their overall land footprint than by their location. Data centers are not distributed evenly across Europe but tend to cluster around economic hubs where housing, logistics, industry and energy infrastructure also compete for space.

A direct comparison between European agriculture and all data centers is not possible because figures for the total land footprint of data centers do not exist. Regional examples do, however, provide an indication. Frankfurt, Europe’s largest data center hub, occupies an estimated 600 hectares of data center sites. This illustrates that the debate primarily plays out at the local and regional level rather than at the scale of Europe’s overall land use.

A hyperscale campus covering several dozen hectares may be barely noticeable on a European scale, yet it can have a significant spatial impact locally. Residents do not compare a proposed data center with Europe’s total agricultural area, but with the immediate surroundings in which they live and work. According to CERRE, this explains why data centers so frequently become the subject of political and public debate.

PRODUCTIVE FARMLAND One of the most common criticisms is that data centers are being built on productive agricultural land. According to research by the European Environment Agency (EEA), Europe loses agricultural land every year to urbanisation, infrastructure projects and economic development. Housing, distribution centers, roads, energy projects and business parks all occupy land that was previously used for agriculture. Data centers are part of this trend, but represent only one category within a much broader pattern of land-use change.

That does not mean the criticism is unfounded. In several European countries, including Germany, France and Italy, data center projects have been developed on former agricultural land. According to researchers at TU Dortmund, most conflicts arise in transitional areas between urban and rural environments. These are places where agriculture, housing, commercial development and digital infrastructure all compete for the same space.

At the same time, research into the European data center market shows that many large facilities have been built on existing industrial and port sites. Around Amsterdam, for example, many data centers are located on former industrial and harbour land. Similar patterns can be found in Frankfurt, Dublin and London, where many facilities are located within existing economic zones with an industrial history. The question, therefore, is not only how much space data centers occupy, but also what kind of land they occupy. A data center on Maasvlakte raises different spatial questions than one built on productive farmland on the edge of a city.

MORE THAN A BATTLE FOR HECTARES According to researchers such as Monstadt and Saltzman, the debate is ultimately not about hectares but about societal choices. Which functions should take priority where land is scarce? Which economic activities are considered essential? And how should policymakers balance food production, housing, logistics, energy infrastructure and digital infrastructure?

The available research paints a more nuanced picture than public debate sometimes suggests. Data centers do occupy land, but their overall footprint forms only a small part of a much broader process of spatial development. Most disputes arise in locations where multiple interests converge and where every new development is highly visible.

The question is therefore not simply whether data centers occupy agricultural land, but under what circumstances they do so and how those decisions are made. Ultimately, the conflict is less a battle over hectares than a debate about how scarce space should be allocated.

“

THE QUESTION, THEREFORE, IS NOT ONLY HOW MUCH SPACE DATA CENTERS OCCUPY, BUT ALSO WHAT KIND OF LAND THEY OCCUPY. A DATA CENTER ON MAASVLAKTE RAISES DIFFERENT SPATIAL QUESTIONS THAN ONE BUILT ON PRODUCTIVE FARMLAND ON THE EDGE OF A CITY.

STIJN DUTCH DATA CENTER ASSOCIATION

GROVE 28

ENERGY FIRST Data centers are still too often judged by their

dependency on foreign providers. As a result, demand for

impact. How much electricity do they consume?

data center capacity will continue to grow. The challenge

How much space do they occupy? What does a

is therefore no longer whether we need additional digital

new connection mean for power grids that are

infrastructure, but how we can enable that growth within

already approaching their limits in many regions?

the boundaries of our energy systems.

This is not a theoretical discussion. In many markets,

These are understandable questions. But they

the limiting factor for growth is shifting from demand to

distract from a far more important discussion. The

execution. The need for digital capacity is clear. The real

question should not be what data centers cost the

question is how new infrastructure can be integrated into

energy system, but what they can contribute to it.

energy systems that must simultaneously decarbonise, electrify and expand. It is precisely here that data centers

That perspective is becoming increasingly relevant.

have an opportunity to play a much larger role than that

We are at a point where two major transitions are

of a traditional energy consumer.

converging. On the one hand, the digitalisation of our

“

economies and societies continues to accelerate. On the other, we are working towards an energy system that is rapidly becoming more sustainable. Both developments require new infrastructure. And both

THE CONVERSATION ABOUT DATA CENTERS NEEDS TO SHIFT FROM CONSUMPTION TO VALUE CREATION. FROM IMPACT TO CONTRIBUTION. FROM STANDALONE FACILITIES TO INTEGRATED SYSTEMS.

are far more interconnected than many people realise.

Over the past few years, the debate around data centers has often been framed in terms of scarcity. Scarcity of space. Scarcity of energy. Scarcity of grid connections. Yet behind these discussions, a much larger development is taking place. The demand for digital capacity is growing faster than ever.

Artificial intelligence is playing a major role in that growth. AI requires ever-increasing amounts of computing power, while governments and businesses across Europe are investing heavily in digital infrastructure to reduce

RETHINKING THE ROLE OF DATA CENTERS While data centers are often viewed as contributors

Data center heat reuse also presents opportunities.

to grid congestion, a different picture is emerging. The

Waste heat from data centers can provide heating

greatest pressure on electricity networks comes from

for homes, businesses and public facilities. In doing

a combination of industrial electrification, renewable

so, digital infrastructure contributes not only to data

energy generation and the growing need for energy

processing but also to local sustainability goals. These

storage. Data centers sit at the intersection of these

developments are part of a broader shift. The sector is

developments. They possess qualities that future energy

evolving from a passive energy consumer into an active

systems will increasingly require: flexibility, predictability

system partner.

and investment capacity. This requires a different way of thinking. Rather than Consider the vast amounts of offshore wind energy that

treating energy, digitalisation, storage and economic

will come ashore in the coming years. The challenge is not

development as separate discussions, we need to focus

only transporting that energy, but also using it effectively

on the connections between them. It is precisely at these

where it becomes available. Data centers can serve as

intersections that the greatest opportunities emerge.

stable consumers in locations where renewable energy is generated, helping to absorb peaks in production and

In several countries, governments, grid operators and

making investments in new sustainable energy projects

private-sector stakeholders are now working on what

more viable. The same principle applies to battery

we refer to as data and energy clusters. The concept is

storage, intelligent energy management and backup

straightforward: bring energy generation, energy storage

power infrastructure.

and energy consumption together and allow them to operate as a single integrated system.

A SMARTER ENERGY SYSTEM

Consider locations where offshore wind energy comes

Traditionally, backup power systems are installed for

ashore. Traditionally, that electricity must be transported

emergencies that, ideally, never occur. Yet the same

through the high-voltage network to users elsewhere,

infrastructure

integrated,

requiring significant investment in grid infrastructure. An

contribute to the stability of the electricity grid. Batteries

alternative approach is to create demand close to where

can reduce congestion. Flexible workloads can be

the energy is available. Data centers can play a role as

shifted to periods when renewable energy is abundant.

stable consumers of electricity. Batteries can absorb

AI training tasks do not always need to be executed

peaks in supply. Hydrogen production facilities can utilise

immediately and can therefore become part of a more

surplus energy. Together, they form a local ecosystem in

flexible energy system.

which generation, storage and consumption reinforce

can,

when

intelligently

one another.

“

THE QUESTION SHOULD NOT BE WHAT DATA CENTERS COST THE ENERGY SYSTEM, BUT WHAT THEY CAN CONTRIBUTE TO IT.

A FUTURE-PROOF ENERGY SYSTEM Not because energy is more important than digitalisation, but because the two are inseparable. A future-proof digital

economy

requires

future-proof

energy

system. And a future-proof energy system requires partners capable of providing flexibility, innovation and investment capacity.

Data centers can fulfil that role. The question is no longer whether data centers are part of the energy transition. They already are. The real question is whether we are

The result is a more efficient energy system. Less

prepared to unlock their full potential.

transmission capacity is required. Renewable energy is utilised more effectively. New economic activity can be

Because when we stop treating digitalisation and energy

developed more quickly. What are often treated today

as separate challenges, something far more valuable

as separate projects can evolve into a single integrated

emerges: a system in which both reinforce one another.

system. Stijn Grove This systems-based approach is attracting growing

Managing Director, Dutch Data Center Association

international attention. Not because it solves a single challenge, but because it addresses several simultaneously: grid congestion, sustainability, economic development and digital growth.

That is hardly surprising. The energy transition requires flexibility. The digital transition requires capacity. By addressing both challenges together, we create opportunities that would not exist if they were tackled separately. Perhaps that is the most important lesson of this moment.

The conversation about data centers needs to shift from consumption to value creation. From impact to contribution. From standalone facilities to integrated systems. That is why I advocate a simple but powerful principle: Energy First.

EUROPE GETS A NEW MAP OF DATA CENTER LOCATIONS The European data center market continues to expand, but the map of where new facilities are being built is changing. For years, nearly all major investments were concentrated in Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris, and Dublin (FLAP+D). Today, however, constraints around power availability, capacity, and permitting are increasingly forcing developers to look beyond these established hubs.

According to real estate advisor CBRE, the traditional

and cloud infrastructure and remain indispensable

hubs remain highly attractive because of their excellent

for international connectivity and latency-sensitive

connectivity, concentration of cloud providers, and

applications. However, rapidly growing demand

major international internet exchanges. At the same time,

for capacity means that an increasing share of new

these markets are increasingly reaching their limits. Grid

developments is taking place in regions where sufficient

capacity is becoming scarce, expansion is more complex,

power and development space are still available.

and new developments take longer to complete.

FLAP+D therefore remains the backbone of Europe's digital infrastructure. These major hubs host a significant share of the continent's hyperscale data centers

GROWTH SHIFTS TO NEW REGIONS

SCANDINAVIA BENEFITS FROM ENERGY AVAILABILITY

The rise of AI is changing the criteria for selecting new

Northern Europe is also gaining momentum. Sweden,

data center locations. Whereas fiber connectivity and

Finland, and Norway offer a combination that is becoming

proximity to end users once dominated site selection,

increasingly attractive to hyperscale operators: abundant

the speed of grid connections, access to electricity, and

renewable electricity, a cool climate, and ample room for

opportunities for future expansion have now become

expansion.

decisive factors.

As a result, more investment is flowing toward Stockholm,

Madrid is benefiting from this shift and is emerging as

Helsinki, and Oslo, while more northerly locations such as

Southern Europe’s leading data center hub. Portugal

Narvik are increasingly being considered for large-scale

occupies a particularly interesting position. Large-scale

AI infrastructure. For workloads where access to power is

developments are taking shape around Lisbon—and

more important than ultra-low latency, Scandinavia offers

especially Sines—where developers can take advantage

clear advantages.

of renewable energy, international submarine cable connections, and relatively abundant available capacity.

AI IS REDEFINING SITE SELECTION

As a result, the country is increasingly positioning itself as

The rapid growth of AI is accelerating this geographical

a destination for energy-intensive AI workloads.

shift. Modern AI data centers require significantly more electrical capacity than traditional cloud environments,

The same trend can be seen across virtually every

making reliable access to large amounts of power a

European data center market. Alongside the traditional

strategic site selection criterion.

hubs, new regional clusters are emerging that benefit

In some cases, developers now begin by identifying

from better access to energy, available land, or strategic

locations with sufficient available power before deciding

geographic locations. The presence of a major internet

which workloads are best suited to those sites. Large

exchange is no longer the sole determinant of where

metropolitan hubs remain essential for latency-sensitive

new capacity is built; access to electricity and room for

applications. AI training and other energy-intensive

expansion are becoming equally important.

workloads, however, can increasingly be deployed in regions where electricity and renewable energy are more readily available.

NARVIK

TRADITIONAL HUBS EMERGING ALTERNATIVE HUBS

GÄVLE FALUN OSLO

STOCKHOLM

DUBLN

MANCHESTER HAMBURG

GALWAY BIRMINGHAM

AMSTERDAM ROTTERDAM

LONDON

CORK

BERLIN WARSCHAU

FRANKFURT PARIS MÜNCHEN

LYON MILAN MARSEILLE

ZARAGOZA

MADRID

LISBON

SINES

BARCELONA

K0UVOLA

HELSINKI

NEW DATA CENTERS EXPANDING INTO EMERGING EUROPEAN REGIONS

ICE BATTERY ALLOWS DATA CENTERS TO ‘BREATHE’ WITH THE ELECTRICITY GRID Grid congestion is forcing data centers to rethink their energy consumption. In addition to more efficient hardware and intelligent software, a different form of energy storage can also help create a more flexible power grid: the ice battery. By storing “cold” whenever sufficient electricity is available, the entire cooling demand can be shifted to periods when the grid is under less strain.

Cooling accounts for a significant share of a data center’s energy consumption. Under normal circumstances, that demand is directly linked to the electricity grid. An ice battery breaks that direct connection. The system stores thermal energy by freezing a mixture of water and glycol. During periods of high grid demand, the stored cooling capacity is supplied to the HVAC system, allowing the cooling installation to draw little additional electricity from the grid.

According to Sjoerd Vrijburg of Wewantice, this creates a new form of operational flexibility. “Today, data centers can only consume electricity. By introducing a storage medium between the grid and the cooling system, they can effectively breathe with the grid.”

“BREATHE” ICE BATTERIES

A BUFFER BETWEEN COOLING AND ELECTRICITY DEMAND

SCALABLE WITH A LONG SERVICE LIFE

Florens van den Bosch of Wewantice believes this

A standard ice battery provides approximately

flexibility fits well with the changing role of data

570 kWh of cooling energy storage. For larger

centers. The sector is becoming an increasingly

installations, multiple tanks can be installed

integral part of the wider energy system, where

alongside

energy efficiency alone is no longer sufficient.

estimates a service life of around forty years

Thermal energy storage also makes it possible to

without noticeable capacity degradation. The

spread electricity demand over time, reducing

tanks are also non-flammable and fully recyclable.

pressure on the grid.

According to Vrijburg, depending on electricity

one

another.

The

manufacturer

prices and the operational profile, the investment can pay for itself in approximately two years.

An ice battery enables cooling systems to operate primarily when renewable energy is abundant, grid demand is low, or electricity prices are more

Whether ice storage will be adopted on a larger

favourable.

scale in data centers will depend on the evolution of grid congestion, electricity prices and the growing need for greater flexibility within the energy system.

EASY INTEGRATION One of the key advantages is that the technology

According to Vrijburg, the strength of the system

does not require a completely new cooling

lies in the energy released and absorbed during

system. Virtually every data center already uses

water’s phase transition between liquid and ice.

air chillers that are capable of producing sub-zero

A storage tank is fully charged within eight to

temperatures. The ice battery is integrated into

ten hours and subsequently provides cooling

the existing cooling circuit as a thermal storage

capacity for ten to sixteen hours. Because the ice

medium, allowing current installations to be

melts very slowly, at roughly one percent per day,

expanded with thermal energy storage.

the stored cooling energy remains available over an extended period.

ICE BATTERY

1. SUSTAINABLE ENERGY Renewable electricity powers the cooling machine

4. HEAT EXCHANGER The heat exchanger transfers stored cooling to the data center’s cooling system

ICE BATTERY

2. COOLING MACHINE COLD WATER 7 - 12 °C

3. ICE STORAGE Cooling energy is stored as ice until it is needed

DATA CENTER Cooled water is supplied to the data center. Warmer return water flows back to the heat exchanger.

HOT WATER RETURN 12 - 18 °C

The cooling machine charges the system by freezing water

AI BRINGS DATA CENTERS OFFSHORE AI data centers could one day be built on the foundations of offshore wind farms. Together with Vattenfall, Project Enki is exploring how computing power can be connected directly to renewable energy generated at sea. “Instead of bringing energy to the data center, we’re bringing the data center to the energy.”

The premise is straightforward: electricity generated by offshore wind farms does not necessarily have to be transmitted to shore before being consumed by a data center. Part of that power could instead be used directly offshore for AI workloads. According to the project’s initiators, this represents a different way of thinking about the relationship between energy generation and digital infrastructure.

Vattenfall is one of the project’s partners. The initial studies focus on locations within the company’s existing offshore wind farms where a compact AI facility could be installed on existing infrastructure. “That could range from unused foundations to offshore platforms,” says Nardi Polak, Head of Supplier Innovation at Vattenfall.

OFFSHORE

AI INFRASTRUCTURES

OFFSHORE

AI INFRASTRUCTURES

AI CHANGES LOCATION STRATEGY According

Project

Enki

founder

Paul

Kunneman, the emergence of AI is precisely what makes the concept attractive. “Traditional cloud environments require almost constant availability. AI is different.”

Training large language models, in particular, can be scheduled relatively easily. As a result, the availability of renewable energy can play a much greater role in determining where computing infrastructure is located. In addition, modern GPU systems deliver much higher compute density than traditional server environments. “An AI data center can be much smaller. And one of AI’s most important workloads—training models—is highly schedulable.”

An obvious question is why Project Enki is not first building a pilot installation on land. According to Kunneman, such a pilot would add little value. Even a relatively small installation would still require the complete power chain, cooling systems and electrical infrastructure. Integrating those systems is precisely the core of the concept. Demonstrating the technology at an actual offshore location therefore provides far more insight than a simplified land-based prototype.

ABOVE THE WATER, NOT BELOW

BUSINESS CASE FIRST

The project inevitably recalls Microsoft’s Project

For Vattenfall, the project did not begin with a

Natick, which placed sealed server capsules on the

technical challenge but with the question of

seabed for several years. Although the experiment

whether the concept could be economically and

proved technically successful, maintenance

operationally viable. “We’re regularly approached

turned out to be complicated because entire

with ideas from the market,” says Polak. “The first

capsules had to be recovered whenever hardware

thing we assess is whether there is a positive

needed replacing.

business case.” Once an offshore data center appeared commercially feasible, the company

Project Enki deliberately takes a different

brought together specialists from several business

approach.

units to further investigate its technical, economic

Kunneman

explains:

“The

infrastructure remains above the water, mounted

and operational feasibility.

on existing offshore structures. That allows us to make use of the maintenance logistics that

“The current phase is primarily about site

offshore wind farms already have in place.”

selection,” Polak explains. “We’re evaluating which existing offshore assets might be suitable and what

There are more differences compared to Project

permits are already available.” According to him,

Natick, Kunneman says. “Microsoft primarily

Vattenfall has several categories of sites that could

worked with CPUs and FPGAs. We are looking

qualify. “These include existing offshore platforms,

at GPUs and other AI processors.” Because AI

foundations where no wind turbine was ever

hardware evolves rapidly, replacement must be

installed, and former offshore accommodation

straightforward, without having to lift complete

facilities that are no longer, or only partially, in use.”

installations out of the sea. The opportunity to reuse such infrastructure According to Kunneman, the concept requires

is particularly attractive, says Polak. “Existing

very little entirely new technology. Offshore

structures can be given a second life.” He says this

structures have been used for decades in the oil,

fits Vattenfall’s ambition to maximize the value of

gas and offshore wind industries, while the data

existing assets while contributing to circularity.

center sector already relies on standardized designs for racks, power systems and cooling. “You know exactly how much it weighs, how much heat it can tolerate and how much vibration is acceptable.” In his view, the individual technologies are already well understood. The real challenge lies in integrating them.

OFFSHORE ENGINEERING AS THE FOUNDATION The cooling system is likewise based on proven offshore technology. Seawater is used in the outer cooling loop, while the IT equipment itself remains part of a closed cooling circuit. Cold seawater is drawn from deeper layers where temperatures remain relatively constant. After heat exchange, the water is discharged higher in the water column. “By controlling the flow rate, we ensure the seawater doesn’t warm up excessively,” says Kunneman. According to him, this prevents the installation from having any noticeable impact on the temperature of the surrounding seawater.

According to another project initiator, Youp Overtoom, this also illustrates the broader

“

philosophy behind Project Enki. “We’re using methods that are already common in offshore engineering.” Most of the individual building blocks

THE INNOVATION LIES IN COMBINING OFFSHORE TECHNOLOGY, ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE AND AI DATA CENTER ENGINEERING IN A NEW WAY.

already exist. The innovation lies in combining offshore technology, energy infrastructure and AI data center engineering in a new way.

The first step is a demonstration project at an existing offshore location. Only if that practical trial proves both technically and economically successful do the initiators intend to standardize the concept further. The long-term vision is to develop modular AI facilities that can be integrated into offshore substations. “As far as we’re concerned, this shouldn’t stop with the first one,” says Kunneman. “Our ambition is for AI data centers to become a standard component of future offshore wind farms.”

OFFSHORE AI INFRASTRUCTURE

1. WIND ENERGY

4. CLOSED-LOOP COOLING

Offshore wind turbines generate renewable electricity close to the IT platform

An internal coolant carries server heat to a heat exchanger. Seawater never touches the IT equipment.

2. SUBSEA POWER CABLE An underwater AC or DC cable delivers electricity directly to the IT unit

3. MODULAR SERVERS Servers inside a standard container use the electricity to process data and generate heat

6. WARM WATER DISCHARGE

5. COLD SEAWATER INTAKE

After absorbing heat, the seawater is returned 1–2 metres below the sea surface.

Pumps draw in cold seawater from a depth of 20–40 metres and filter it before cooling

THE DATA CENTER THAT DISAPPEARED BENEATH THE WAVES As the growth of data centers is increasingly constrained by available grid capacity, energy consumption and the challenge of dissipating heat, the industry is looking for alternative solutions. Microgrids can make data centers less dependent on the electricity grid, thermal storage can shift cooling demand to more favourable times, and the sea is also increasingly being considered as a location for digital infrastructure.

Microsoft took an early step in this direction in

According to Microsoft, the rapid growth of cloud

2018. Off the coast of Scotland’s Orkney Islands,

infrastructure created an opportunity to rethink

the company lowered an entire data center, The

fundamentally how and where data centers are

Northern Isles, onto the seabed. Project Natick

built.

was designed to establish whether servers could operate reliably for extended periods in a sealed

With its cylindrical pressure vessel, The Northern

underwater environment, and what benefits such

Isles looked more like a small submarine than

a setup might offer in areas such as cooling and

a conventional data center. Inside were twelve

energy use.

racks containing 864 servers and 27.6 petabytes of storage capacity. The data center had a power

The ambitions behind the experiment extended

capacity of 240 kW. Its location in Orkney allowed

well beyond a single data center. “Most of the

it to draw on an electricity grid supplied entirely

data centers we will ever build have not been

by wind, solar and other renewable energy

built yet,” Ben Cutler said at the time. Cutler was

sources. For cooling, heat was transferred to the

a project manager in Microsoft’s Special Projects

surrounding seawater through a closed-loop

research group and led the Project Natick team.

system.

BENEATH THE WAVES

REMARKABLY RELIABLE When Microsoft recovered the capsule in 2020, reliability proved to be one of the most striking results. “Our failure rate in the water is one-eighth of what we see on land,” Cutler said. Microsoft suggested that possible explanations included the dry nitrogen atmosphere inside the sealed capsule and the absence of people moving or replacing equipment.

Project Natick did not lead to a commercial deployment, but Microsoft nevertheless regarded the experiment as a success: according to the company, it demonstrated that the concept was technically feasible and could offer benefits in terms of reliability. Eight years later, however, the questions behind the experiment are more relevant than ever. As the industry looks for ways to combine growing demand for computing power with limited grid capacity and ever-increasing cooling requirements, attention is once again

“

turning to solutions that rethink how data centers are built, powered and cooled and even where they are located.

OUR FAILURE RATE IN THE WATER IS ONE-EIGHTH OF WHAT WE SEE ON LAND

1. TWELVE SERVER RACKS 864 servers sealed inside

4. EIGHT × MORE RELIABLE

Eight times fewer server failures

2. SEALED STEEL VESSEL Filled with dry nitrogen

5. SEAWATER COOLING

Cooling without freshwater

3. TWO YEARS UNDERWATER

Deployed 36 m deep off Orkney

6. RENEWABLE POWER

UNDERWATER DATACENTER

DIGITAL SOVEREIGNTY REQUIRES MORE THAN A DUTCH DATA CENTER The debate on digital sovereignty is often framed in terms of cloud providers, AI models and geopolitical dependencies. According to Michiel de van der Schueren, however, the issue starts at a much more fundamental level. “Digital sovereignty is only a small part of technological sovereignty, but probably the most important part,” he told attendees at the National Data Center Day.

Without control over digital infrastructure, De van der

“This is where everything begins,” he said. “Data centers,

Schueren, Author of Digital Sovereignty argued, it

together with the energy infrastructure that supports

becomes increasingly difficult to preserve economic

them, are the first building blocks we need to create a

independence, innovative capacity and, ultimately,

strong digital foundation.” At the same time, he warned

geopolitical influence. Data centers play a central role;

against reducing the debate to a simple question of

not because they guarantee digital sovereignty on their

where data is stored.

own, but because they provide the foundation on which all other digital services depend.

MORE THAN A QUESTION OF LOCATION Many organizations equate digital sovereignty with the physical location of their systems. If data resides in Europe, the problem appears solved. According to De van der Schueren, that assumption is misleading. “We need to distinguish between operational, tactical, and strategic sovereignty. Operational sovereignty concerns the physical infrastructure: where the system is located and who has access to it.”

Local data centers offer clear advantages. Organizations know where their data resides, and which parties have physical access to the environment. But that is only the first step. “Tactical, or data sovereignty, is about control, protection and security of the data itself.” Issues such as encryption, key management and regulatory compliance become central. The physical location of data becomes

NEW DEPENDENCIES

less important than identifying who can gain access to it. That requires a fundamentally different way of thinking.

The growing focus on digital sovereignty reflects a

“Stop asking where my data are, start asking who holds

broader realization that European organizations have

the keys.”

become heavily dependent on foreign technology providers. De van der Schueren pointed to U.S. legislation

The shift also affects data center operators. Customers

such as the Cloud Act, FISA 702 and the Reforming

increasingly expect solutions that allow them to retain

Intelligence and Securing America Act (RISAA). These

control over their information. Encryption, confidential

laws demonstrate that digital dependence is not only a

computing, and advanced key management are

technical issue, but also a legal and geopolitical one.

becoming integral to the conversation. Europe, he argued, relied for too long on a stable

“

international environment in which American technology was taken for granted. That assumption is now under pressure. “Because of its rapid development, digitalization

STOP ASKING WHERE MY DATA ARE, START ASKING WHO HOLDS THE KEYS.

has increasingly become a geopolitical issue.” Digital technologies now underpin almost every critical sector, from healthcare and energy to defense and industry. As a result, the infrastructure supporting them has become strategically important.

DATA CENTERS AS STRATEGIC INFRASTRUCTURE For years, the industry has argued that data centers

Europe, he believes, possesses stronger assets than is

should be recognized as critical infrastructure. De van der

often acknowledged. “Our dependence on American

Schueren goes further, describing them as an essential

technology is significant, but not absolute. In many

pillar of Europe’s economic and technological position.

sectors there are viable European alternatives, while in specific areas, such as semiconductor manufacturing

He compares digital infrastructure to energy networks,

equipment, European companies even hold globally

ports, and telecommunications systems. “These

strategic positions.”

are essential services that keep a modern economy functioning. Without that foundation, digital autonomy

As a result, data centers are increasingly viewed not

becomes impossible.”

simply as facilities for housing IT equipment, but as strategic assets that contribute to economic resilience and national security.

At the same time, he stressed that a local data center does not automatically guarantee digital independence. Hardware, software, cloud platforms and semiconductors often originate from suppliers outside Europe. That is why organizations must evaluate the entire technology stack rather than infrastructure alone.

“

NOT ONLY BECAUSE THE CEO IS ULTIMATELY ACCOUNTABLE, BUT ALSO BECAUSE LEADERSHIP MUST BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN WHY A PARTICULAR CHOICE WAS MADE.

THE NEXT INFRASTRUCTURE WAVE Artificial intelligence adds urgency to the debate. According to De van der Schueren, Europe stands at the beginning of a new technological wave. Following the eras of mainframes, client-server computing and cloud infrastructure, AI is creating an infrastructure layer that will shape future economic growth.

Supporting that transition requires major investments in computing capacity, energy infrastructure and data center capacity. Europe has already launched initiatives including AI Factories and supercomputing programs. “It involves enormous amounts of money,” De van der Schueren observed. “Europe is investing billions in AI Factories and the infrastructure needed to support them.”

He argued that Europe should focus not only on AI models, but on the complete ecosystem required to develop and operate them, including computing power, storage, data processing and AI-optimized facilities.

This presents an opportunity for Europe’s data center sector. While the cloud revolution was largely dominated by American hyperscalers, AI offers Europe the chance to build a stronger domestic ecosystem through investments in AI Factories, supercomputing, and digital infrastructure.

Europe is unlikely to become fully self-sufficient, but it can reduce strategic dependencies and expand its freedom of choice. That gives data centers a role that extends far beyond hosting equipment. They are becoming key components of a European digital ecosystem designed to support economic growth, innovation, and technological autonomy.

EXECUTIVE DECISIONS Many organizations equate digital sovereignty with the

protection and security of the data itself.” Issues such as

physical location of their systems. If data resides in

encryption, key management and regulatory compliance

Europe, the problem appears solved. According to De

become central. The physical location of data becomes

van der Schueren, that assumption is misleading. “We

less important than identifying who can gain access to it.

need to distinguish between operational, tactical, and

That requires a fundamentally different way of thinking.

strategic sovereignty. Operational sovereignty concerns

“Stop asking where my data are, start asking who holds

the physical infrastructure: where the system is located

the keys.”

and who has access to it.” The shift also affects data center operators. Customers Local data centers offer clear advantages. Organizations

increasingly expect solutions that allow them to retain

know where their data resides, and which parties have

control over their information. Encryption, confidential

physical access to the environment. But that is only the

computing, and advanced key management are

first step. “Tactical, or data sovereignty, is about control,

becoming integral to the conversation.

PIOTR POLISH DATA CENTER ASSOCIATION

KOWALSKI 56

FROM CONNECTIVITY TO ENERGY CBRE’s latest market analysis shows that the European

Local conditions also play a role. Poland has a relatively

data center market is entering a new phase. The

large number of brownfield sites that can be redeveloped

traditional FLAP+ regions (Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam,

for large scale data center projects. Its moderate

Paris and Dublin) remain important, but an increasing

climate helps support efficient cooling. Average annual

share of investment is shifting to other parts of Europe.

temperatures are around 9°C in Warsaw, compared

Poland is one of the most notable growth markets. This

with 11°C in Frankfurt and London, 13°C in Madrid and

raises the question of what is driving that development.

almost 18°C in Athens. This supports free cooling and, with closed-loop, dry- and liquid-cooling technologies,

There is no simple answer. Poland’s rise is not the result of

can reduce energy and water use.

a single competitive advantage, but rather a combination of factors. Demand for digital infrastructure continues to

Far more important is the development of the energy

grow, while the criteria for selecting a data center location

system. Over the coming years, Poland will invest heavily

are changing. Connectivity and proximity to users

(240bn EUR) in expanding its high voltage transmission

remain essential, but the availability of energy, space

grid, offshore wind, nuclear power, energy storage and

and opportunities for future expansion are becoming

additional generation capacity. These investments are

increasingly important.

supporting not only the energy transition, but also the

“

conditions needed for an increasingly digital economy.

DIGITAL CONNECTIVITY AND ENERGY ARE COMING TOGETHER.

“

COUNTRIES THAT SUCCEED IN ALIGNING ENERGY POLICY, INDUSTRIAL POLICY AND DIGITAL STRATEGY WILL BE BETTER POSITIONED TO ACCOMMODATE THE NEXT PHASE OF DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE.

DIGITAL CONNECTIVITY AND ENERGY ARE COMING TOGETHER One example is Choczewo on the Baltic coast, where investments in offshore wind, Poland’s first nuclear power plant and electricity infrastructure are coming together. In this particular location it is possible to locate a largescale data center campus with a connection capacity of 3.2 GW. Projects such as these illustrate how energy infrastructure and digital infrastructure are increasingly being developed in parallel. It is also notable that Polish companies are delivering a significant share of this work themselves, helping to build expertise, capacity and a mature domestic supply chain. The Ecosystem Guide 2025, published by the Polish Data Center Association, identifies 70 organizations operating throughout the data center lifecycle, of which 57% are Polish or produce locally.

The same approach can be seen in the work of

Perhaps that is the most important development of all.

Poland’s national transmission system operator, Polskie

Competition between European data center regions

Sieci Elektroenergetyczne (PSE). Its long-term grid

is becoming less about fibre networks and internet

development plans explicitly consider the expected

exchanges alone. Countries that succeed in aligning

growth in electricity demand from data centers up to

energy policy, industrial policy and digital strategy will be

5GW by 2040. As a result, data centers are no longer

better positioned to accommodate the next phase of

viewed solely as large electricity consumers, but

digital infrastructure. From a Polish perspective, that is

increasingly as part of the country’s future economic

the direction in which the European data center market

infrastructure.

is heading.

Piotr Kowalski Managing Director, Polish Data Center Association (PLDCA)

PURE DC BUILDS ON YAS ISLAND FOR CLOUD AND AI On Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, Pure DC has developed its first data center in the Middle East. The AUH01 campus has been designed for hyperscale cloud and AI applications and will ultimately provide 48 MW of IT capacity.

The data center occupies a 16.19-acre site, approximately 6.5 hectares. The campus consists of two buildings with a combined floor area of more than 40,000 square metres. Building 1 is operational and contains four data halls. The first of these was handed over to a hyperscale customer in 2025. Building 2 has now received all the necessary permits.

DESIGN ADAPTED FOR AI One notable aspect of AUH01 is that Pure DC found scope during development to increase the power capacity of the same complex. Initial plans envisaged between 41 and 45 MW. By optimising the design and adding new power strings, the campus can now expand to 48 MW. This also creates greater capacity for high-density AI systems.

The cooling design reflects this requirement. Pure DC combines air and liquid cooling, allowing the facility to accommodate both conventional cloud servers and more demanding AI systems. The data center uses a closed-loop water cooling system. According to Pure DC, its average annual PUE is 1.38.

Construction was carried out in partnership with Laing O’Rourke. Following systems testing in February 2025, the first data hall was ready for handover. Jim McCarthy, Chief Delivery Officer at Pure DC, described the opening at the time as “an important moment in the growth of Pure DC” and stressed that all milestones had been achieved on schedule.

RENEWABLE ENERGY Sustainability also played a role in the design. In addition to the closed-loop water system, Pure DC uses HVO as fuel for backup power and employs modular cooling systems. For all electricity consumed by AUH01 in 2025, the company also purchased I-REC certificates linked to solar power from the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in the United Arab Emirates. This means the facility’s electricity consumption was fully matched, on an accounting basis, with renewable generation.

According to Executive Chairman and interim CEO Gary Wojtaszek, the expansion fits Pure DC’s long-term strategy for the region. He says the company remains strongly committed to the Middle East, where demand for digital infrastructure continues to grow despite economic and geopolitical uncertainty. National digitalisation programmes, cloud and AI are expected to drive that demand further.

With AUH01, Pure DC has not only brought its first Middle Eastern campus into operation. The company also sees it as its first project in the region that can provide a foundation for further growth, while it is now also developing a hyperscale campus in Riyadh.

ENERGY MARKET UPDATE

Stroomkr8 is an independent energy consultancy company. They support their clients on all kinds of energy sourcing activities, from strategic/conceptual matters to daily and operational practice. They buy and sell energy for their clients in 17 different countries with a team of highly experienced colleagues within both supply companies and consultancy. More information: www.stroomkr8.nl

INTRODUCTION After another highly volatile first half of 2026, energy has become an even more important strategic risk domain for data centers. Volatile prices, geopolitical uncertainty, grid congestion and the growing share of renewables all affect procurement decisions and security of supply.

Renewable electricity is playing an increasingly important role in the Dutch electricity mix. In 2025, solar and wind accounted for 45% of annual electricity production. The Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) expects this to rise to 65% by 2030. This growing share of intermittent generation is increasing both price volatility and the need for flexibility.

The Dutch large-scale battery storage (BESS) market is gaining momentum. At the end of 2025, 550 MW was installed, with a target of 5 GW by 2030. Price volatility and congestion services make storage increasingly attractive, although high transmission costs, congestion and the lack of a capacity market continue to hinder growth.

This report covers the most important developments from January through August 2026 and looks ahead to the remainder of the year and 2027. The central question is: how can data centers stay in control of cost, risk and continuity in today’s turbulent energy landscape?

POWER MARKET Energy markets have been heavily influenced by the Iran-

The Dutch power market showed a pronounced bimodal

US/Israel conflict, reacting almost daily to developments

pattern in June. Abundant solar generation pushed

in the region. Signs of progress towards peace repeatedly

daytime prices towards zero or below, while windless

created a more bearish outlook, only for renewed

conditions, heat and constrained French nuclear exports

hostilities to push prices back up. This drove prices to

drove evening prices sharply higher. On 25 June, the

year-to-date highs in July.

Dutch day-ahead price peaked at €902.47/MWh, driven by high air-conditioning demand, low wind, falling solar

European electricity prices rose by 30–40% year-on-year

production and French nuclear plants reducing output

in 2026, mainly because of tight gas supplies and reduced

because of high river-water temperatures. In early July,

reserve margins rather than a sudden surge in demand. At

another peak reached €589.78/MWh. At the same time,

the same time, global electricity consumption continues

the first half of 2026 recorded 407 hours of negative

to grow structurally, driven by electrification, AI and digital

prices, with a low of -€498/MWh.

infrastructure. For data center operators, this volatility creates both risk For data centers, the contrast is striking. Their energy

and opportunity. Operators able to curtail, shift or store

consumption typically follows a steady 24/7 baseload

electricity locally during expensive periods can benefit

profile, while the market increasingly does the opposite.

from the spread. Battery storage or backup generation

Midday lows, evening peaks and higher imbalance costs

may also create opportunities to participate in balancing

make procurement and hedging more complex.

markets such as aFRR and mFRR.

EPEX

The move from hourly to 15-minute spot pricing in

MWh at the end of July and Cal 2028 at €83.38/MWh. This

October 2025 should eventually bring the spot market

backwardation indicates that the market still sees much

more closely in line with imbalance and other quarter-

of the current tightness as temporary, while maintaining

hourly markets. Combined with improved renewable

a substantial winter premium.

forecasting and European balancing through PICASSO, this could reduce imbalance costs over time.

Security of supply remains a structural concern. TenneT warns that the Dutch adequacy standard risks

Imbalance trading itself has become riskier because

being breached towards 2030, while the government is

regulation state 2 occurs more frequently. In this

preparing a central capacity market with the first auctions

situation, the direction of production needs to shift

scheduled for 2028.

within a 15-minute period to keep the grid balanced, while Balance Responsible Parties (BRPs) only know afterwards

For large off-takers, long-term consumption forecasts are

which regulation state applied. More frequent regulation

therefore becoming increasingly important. Expansion

state 2 therefore increases costs for suppliers and

programmes need to take grid capacity into account well

ultimately their cost of serving data centers.

in advance. Under the Dutch ‘use it or lose it’ (GOTORK) regime, grid operators can reclaim unused contracted

On the forward market, the Cal+1 curve moved up sharply,

capacity in congested areas. Data centers therefore

particularly at the short end. The NL forward for August

need a clear and substantiated outlook for both existing

2026 rose to €122.34/MWh, September to €130.73/MWh

consumption and future growth.

and Q4 2026 to €133.54/MWh. Cal 2027 stood at €100.41/

POWER FUTURES

GAS & LNG Gas is not a direct cost item for most data centers, but gas-fired power plants frequently set the marginal electricity price. This makes developments in the gas market highly relevant to power procurement.

The gas market experienced its sharpest movements following disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. From around €40–42/MWh at the end of June, TTF rose to €48–49/MWh in early July, €57.56/MWh around 20 July and almost €63/MWh on 24 July, the highest level since January 2023. After US strikes on Iran were halted and hostilities paused, prices eased to roughly €56–59/MWh.

The Strait of Hormuz accounts for roughly 20% of global oil and LNG flows. Disruption therefore directly affects Qatari LNG exports from Ras Laffan and intensifies competition between Asian and European buyers. At

“

the same time, persistent heat in Northwest Europe has increased demand for gas-fired power generation.

FOR DATA CENTERS, THE KEY MESSAGE IS THAT THE COMING WINTER REMAINS EXPENSIVE AND VOLATILE, WHILE 2027 AND 2028 CURRENTLY OFFER MORE ATTRACTIVE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PHASED HEDGING.

European gas storage adds another risk. Dutch storage stood at 34.9% at the end of July, the lowest level recorded for that calendar date since measurements began in 2011. Europe as a whole stood at 53.7%, compared with roughly 65% a year earlier. The flat forward curve makes commercial injection less attractive, leaving much of the Dutch filling effort to state-owned EBN.

TTF SPOT

The forward curve nevertheless suggests that the market

Growing global LNG capacity, with more than 300 billion

sees the current tightness as temporary. TTF Q4 2026

m³ expected to be added before 2030, supports this

trades at €56.78/MWh and Q1 2027 at €53.67/MWh,

longer-term view. For data centers, the key message is

compared with Cal 2027 at €42.14/MWh and Cal 2028 at

that the coming winter remains expensive and volatile,

€29.15/MWh.

while 2027 and 2028 currently offer more attractive opportunities for phased hedging. A resolution of the conflict with Iran could, however, trigger a sharp price correction.

GAS FUTURES

CARBON MARKET (EUAS) Compared with oil, gas and power, the CO₂ market was

The legislative process will continue through the

remarkably stable. The EUA December 2026 contract

European Parliament and Council into 2027, with

traded within a relatively narrow range of approximately

implementation targeted for 2028. ETS2, covering

€78–82 per tonne.

buildings and road transport, is also scheduled to start in 2028.

This stability partly reflects the fact that the carbon market is currently driven more by European policy than

For data centers, carbon pricing matters mainly through

by geopolitical events. The proposed revision of the EU

the indirect CO₂ costs embedded in electricity prices

ETS extends free allowances for CBAM-protected heavy

and through the long-term decarbonisation costs

industry, changes the reduction path and postpones full

reflected in PPAs and sustainability agreements.

depletion of the system. Waste incineration will also enter the ETS.

“

COMPARED WITH OIL, GAS AND POWER, THE CO₂ MARKET WAS REMARKABLY STABLE.

EUA

GRID CONGESTION Grid congestion remains one of the biggest constraints

same time, the ACM introduced a new prioritisation

on Dutch data center growth. According to the Dutch

framework determining which societal functions receive

Data Center Association, the market reached more

priority access to scarce capacity.

than 1.5 GW of IT capacity by the end of 2025, up 7%, with annual growth expected to reach 2.8 GW by 2031.

This also creates an opportunity for the sector. Flexible

Increasingly, however, growth is determined by available

connections, battery storage, congestion management,

grid capacity rather than demand.

shifting AI training loads and other forms of demand response can allow data centers to contribute to grid

Around Eindhoven and Utrecht, new connection requests

stability. Combined with increasingly pronounced

have been placed on waiting lists since 1 July 2026. A

differences between peak and off-peak electricity prices,

court has also ruled that TenneT is not obliged to connect

flexibility can become an economic asset rather than

a data center immediately to an overloaded grid. At the

merely a constraint.

ENERGY OUTLOOK SECOND HALF OF 2026 For the remainder of 2026, the main focus will be gas

September through December are traditionally

storage, winter supply and geopolitical risk. European

important months for finalising winter hedges. Given the

storage needs to increase significantly before

current backwardation, with an expensive front end and

November from its historically low level of 53.7%, with the

more moderate calendar years, this is a moment to review

Netherlands at just 34.9%. The official EU target of 90% by

existing positions rather than wait passively.

1 November appears difficult to achieve at the current fill rate and with the existing forward curve.

For data center leadership, the coming months should also be an execution period: peak and trough flexibility,

Winter risks are already heavily priced in. TTF Q4 2026

backup generation and battery capacity can be

trades at €56.78/MWh and Q1 2027 at €53.67/MWh, while

operationally tested before winter combines higher

NL power Q4 2026 stands at €133.54/MWh.

demand with tight energy supplies.

Structural relief from the planned Dutch capacity market will not arrive before 2028. Security of supply this winter therefore remains highly dependent on weather, wind generation, French nuclear availability and developments around the Strait of Hormuz.

2027 For 2027, the market currently points towards calmer

Geopolitics remains the main wildcard. As long as

conditions than in the summer of 2026, although

the Strait of Hormuz remains vulnerable to renewed

significant tail risks remain. TTF Cal 2027 trades at €42.14/

escalation, short-term gas and power prices — and

MWh, well below current spot prices but above the €33–

volatility itself — will remain elevated. This risk should be

34/MWh level seen at the end of June. NL power Cal 2027

explicitly incorporated into hedging strategies for winter

baseload stands at approximately €100.41/MWh.

2026/2027.

These prices assume that the current Hormuz crisis

These figures have been compiled and checked with

remains temporary. A prolonged or renewed blockade,

care, based on available data and current energy prices.

or a cold winter combined with low gas storage, could

They provide an indication of market developments,

rapidly change that outlook.

but energy markets can change rapidly. The information should therefore be regarded as guidance rather than

For procurement, a phased and blended approach

a guarantee and does not constitute financial or legal

remains attractive: fixed baseload for the majority of

advice.

“

consumption, combined with deliberate peak/trough exposure or PPAs for the remainder.

THIS MAKES 2027 AND 2028 RELATIVELY ATTRACTIVE YEARS FOR PHASED HEDGING AT CURRENT FORWARD PRICES.”

Flexibility is also becoming an asset in its own right. Battery storage, backup generation and demand response can provide protection against price spikes while creating potential revenue through balancing markets and, from 2028, the planned capacity market.

Grid access will remain a critical factor in expansion plans. Early coordination with grid operators on connection timing, contracted capacity and flexible connection models is therefore essential.

The longer-term picture is more favourable. Growing global LNG capacity supports the expectation that current gas tightness is temporary, while the ETS reform should provide greater predictability around long-term decarbonisation costs. This makes 2027 and 2028 relatively attractive years for phased hedging at current forward prices.

JEROEN INTERCONNECT

STEVENS 78

BALANCE AS A STRATEGY

“

available capacity.

BALANCE IS NOT A COMPROMISE. BALANCE IS A STRATEGIC CHOICE.

While reflecting on this, I found myself thinking about the

Europe is engaged in an increasingly intense debate

theme of this edition: Equinox. An equinox, the moment

about AI sovereignty. That ambition is justified. At

when day and night are of equal length, symbolizes

the same time, we have to acknowledge that the

balance. Not because everything becomes the same,

realities of capacity and energy are largely indifferent

but because opposing forces are in equilibrium. Perhaps

to political ambitions. Large-scale AI training requires

that is exactly what Europe’s AI strategy should be

enormous amounts of electricity, space and cooling.

about: not trying to do everything ourselves, but finding

Grid congestion, limited space and lengthy permitting

a sustainable balance between energy, infrastructure,

procedures make it difficult to build AI factories on the

performance and digital sovereignty.

scale seen in the United States or parts of Asia.

The rise of AI is forcing the data centre industry to make a fundamental choice. Not every AI workload needs to run everywhere. A new geographical distribution is emerging in which different regions will each play their own role. Those who understand this shift will be able to design infrastructure more effectively and make smarter use of

That does not mean Europe is losing the AI race. It does mean we need to choose a different position. Training workloads belong where renewable energy is abundant, and the electricity infrastructure is designed to support them. Think of Northern Europe, with its hydropower, or Southern Europe, with its abundant solar energy. These locations allow large foundation models to be trained efficiently without constantly running into the limits of the power grid.

“

THE QUESTION IS NO LONGER WHERE AI RUNS, BUT WHICH PART OF THE AI VALUE CHAIN PERFORMS BEST IN WHICH LOCATION.

EUROPE’S STRENGTH LIES CLOSE TO THE USER Once a model has been trained, the focus shifts to inference: running AI applications in production. Inference consumes far less energy but places much higher demands on responsiveness, reliability and availability. Latency becomes critical. At the same time, organisations are becoming increasingly conscious of where their data is processed and under which legal jurisdiction it resides.

This is precisely where European data centers can distinguish themselves. Not by building the world’s largest AI clusters, but by providing high-quality infrastructure for secure, fast and locally available AI services. Data sovereignty, compliance and low latency together create a proposition that is difficult to replicate elsewhere. The greatest economic value is created when organisations deploy AI in their day-to-day operations.

This also requires a different way of thinking about infrastructure. The question is no longer where AI runs, but which part of the AI value chain performs best in which location. Training belongs where energy is abundant; inference belongs where users, applications and data reside. That is not a concession to Europe’s limitations, but a deliberate strategy of specialisation.

ENERGY AS THE DECISIVE FACTOR Energy is no longer merely a prerequisite; it is increasingly

Perhaps that is the most important lesson of the AI

the decisive factor in facility design, site selection and

transition. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is a

operations. The question is no longer how much capacity

strategic choice. Those who place workloads where

we can build, but where that capacity creates the greatest

they make the most sense create infrastructure that is

economic and societal value.

more efficient, more sustainable and ultimately more competitive. Europe’s greatest opportunity therefore

This also calls for technical innovation. Data centers can

lies not in copying others, but in finding its own balance.

already contribute to a more resilient electricity grid through techniques such as peak shaving, reducing peak

Jeroen Stevens

demand, and by exploring concepts such as shared

CTO, Interconnect

grid capacity (“block power”), enabling existing network capacity to be used more efficiently. We should also be prepared to consider solutions that are still outside the mainstream. Many data centres have redundant grid connections designed to guarantee continuity in the event of a power failure. That reserve capacity is essential, but in practice it is rarely called upon. The question, therefore, is whether part of this reserved capacity could be used more flexibly under strict technical conditions, without compromising operational resilience. Achieving this will require cooperation between the industry, grid operators and governments, but it also demonstrates that the energy transition is not only about building more infrastructure; it is also about making better use of what already exists.

new technologies, artificial intelligence is not the best place to start. Music has been telling that story for much longer.

New technologies rarely arrive quietly. They spark curiosity, but also skepticism. They promise new possibilities while raising fears that something essential may be lost. This pattern has repeated itself for generations, not because every technology is the same, but because societies respond in remarkably similar ways.

Music occupies a unique place in that story. New technologies are not judged first on efficiency or economic value, but on emotion. An instrument must do more than function; it must inspire. That is why social and cultural change often becomes visible in music long before it appears elsewhere.

The history of electronic music shows how predictable this process can be. Almost every innovation was met with both suspicion and excitement. To some, the synthesizer marked the end of “real” music; to others, it heralded a new creative era. In the end, neither side proved completely right.

Over time, the polarization faded. The synthesizer did not replace the piano. Sampling did not make the guitarist obsolete. Rather than replacing what came before, each innovation expanded the creative vocabulary. A new equilibrium emerged in which old and new forms coexisted.

RATHER THAN REPLACING WHAT CAME BEFORE, EACH INNOVATION EXPANDED THE CREATIVE VOCABULARY

If we want to understand how societies respond to

“

IT’S MUSIC, STUPID!

A FAMILIAR REFLEX The debate surrounding AI is therefore less new than it

History suggests that technological revolutions rarely

appears. Once again, we find ourselves between two

unfold as either their strongest critics or greatest

extremes. Some see artificial intelligence as a threat to

champions predict. The fears are often exaggerated.

creativity, employment and human autonomy. Others

The promises rarely prove complete. Over time, society

celebrate it as the solution to almost every problem.

absorbs new technologies, creativity expands and a new

Reality will likely settle somewhere in between.

equilibrium emerges.

AI is, of course, fundamentally different from earlier

Perhaps the same will prove true not only for AI, but also

musical technologies. Where the synthesizer created new

for the infrastructure on which it depends. Today, data

sounds, AI reaches directly into the creative process. It

centers are portrayed either as symbols of excessive

can write, compose, design and program. The question

energy consumption and technological dependence, or

therefore shifts from Which instrument are we using? to

as engines of innovation and economic progress. Reality

Who, or what, is creating?

is likely to prove more nuanced. Like the technologies they enable, data centers will become another accepted part of society: not beyond debate, but increasingly understood in context.

AN EXPANDING VOCABULARY The next eight album covers are more than milestones

Perhaps that is the true meaning of an equinox. Not the

in the history of electronic music. Together, they show

moment when one side triumphs over the other, but when

how new technologies repeatedly found their place in our

a new balance begins to emerge. If history is any guide,

culture. Each marks a moment when the balance shifted,

we may one day look back on this period as we now look

forcing artists and audiences to rethink the relationship

back on the arrival of the synthesizer: not as the moment

between technology and creativity.

machines replaced human creativity, but as the moment we redefined it. Perhaps the same will ultimately be true

The final two images bring that story into the present. One

of the data centers that quietly provide the infrastructure

reflects the arrival of AI as a creative partner. The other,

for this new creative era.

ABBA Voyage, shows how technology is reshaping our understanding of performance and presence.

1969

Music to Moog By Gershon Kingsley

Marks the birth of the synthesizer as a serious musical instrument and the beginning of the electronic music revolution.

Image: Album cover Gershon Kingsley – Music to Moog By (1969) / Audio Fidelity Records - Wagner International photo / Public Domain.

1976

Albedo 0.39 Vangelis

Captures the optimism of the space age, presenting technology as a source of imagination, discovery and creativity.

Image: Album cover Vangelis – Albedo 0.39 (1976) / RCA Records

1978 Equinoxe

Jean-Michel Jarre

Symbolizes a cultural turning point where technology becomes part of our artistic imagination.

Artwork by Michel Granger for Jean-Michel Jarre – Équinoxe (1978) / Disques Dreyfus This image is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license

1978 The Man-Machine (Die Mensch-Maschine) Kraftwerk

An iconic visualization of the increasingly blurred boundary between humans and machines.

Cover of 2009 remastered edition of “The Man-Machine” by Kraftwerk - (Kraftwerk – Die Mensch-Maschine (1978) / Kling Klang / EMI)

1984 Zoolook

Jean-Michel Jarre

Uses digital sampling and manipulated voices to show how technology becomes part of the creative process itself.

Album cover: Jean-Michel Jarre – Zoolook (1984) / Disques Dreyfus - Image: Fairlight CMI

1997 OK Computer Radiohead

Marks the moment when computers ceased to be mere tools and became part of everyday life, culture and identity.

Artwork by Stanley Donwood for Radiohead – OK Computer (1997) / Parlophone

2022 ABBA Voyage ABBA

Digital avatars challenge traditional ideas of authenticity, presence and live performance, showing that technology can recreate the artist as well as the music.

ABBA Voyage / Baillie Walsh / Industrial Light & Magic

2026 The Velvet Sundown The Velvet Sundown

Represents the next step: AI is no longer just a creative tool, but emerges as a creator and artistic identity in its own right.

Image: Official promotional material / AI-generated image of *The Velvet Sundown* (2026)

PHAEDRA EUROFIBER NETHERLANDS

KORTEKAAS 92

FREEDOM OF CHOICE AS A STRATEGIC ASSET DEPENDENCY IS NOT THE PROBLEM

Discussions about digital infrastructure often involve big concepts. Sovereignty. Autonomy. Independence.

That last question is becoming increasingly relevant.

Strategic control. These terms are frequently used

Organisations operate in a world where technology,

as though everyone means the same thing by them. In

economics and geopolitics are becoming ever more

reality, that is rarely the case. Personally, I prefer a simpler

intertwined. Dependencies are therefore unavoidable.

concept: freedom of choice.

The real question is not how to eliminate them, but how to manage them.

Many debates about digital sovereignty ultimately have less to do with technology than with the extent to

Complete independence hardly exists. Virtually every

which organisations retain the ability to make their own

organisation relies on technologies originating from

decisions. Where is data stored? Which suppliers are

different countries, suppliers and ecosystems. This

used? Which laws and regulations apply? And perhaps

applies just as much to cloud platforms as it does to

even more importantly: are there realistic alternatives

software, hardware and connectivity. The digital economy

“

available when circumstances change?

is built on collaboration, specialisation and international value chains.

FREEDOM OF CHOICE REQUIRES ALTERNATIVES. IT REQUIRES VISIBILITY INTO DEPENDENCIES.

That is precisely why I sometimes find the concept of autonomy less useful. It suggests that it is either possible or desirable to do everything yourself. In practice, the more important question is whether you can continue to choose.

Freedom of choice requires alternatives. It requires visibility into dependencies. It requires a clear understanding of which parts of your organisation are truly strategic. Not everything needs to be under direct control, but you do need to know which elements are essential to your continuity, capacity for innovation and competitive position.

RELEVANCE CREATES INFLUENCE

INFRASTRUCTURE AS A FOUNDATION

This applies not only to individual organisations, but also

The same applies to digital infrastructure. For many years,

to Europe as a whole. Discussions about technology

infrastructure was viewed as a given, something that

often focus on what Europe lacks. Equally important is

simply had to be there. Today, it is clear that infrastructure

the question of where Europe is strong today and where

is far more than a technical utility.

it wants to remain strong in the future. Virtually every digital development rests on a foundation Former ASML CEO Peter Wennink captured this well when

of connectivity, data centers, cloud environments and

he argued that the real issue is not sovereignty alone, but

data flows. Whether we are talking about AI, business

relevance. That idea resonates with me. Not because

process digitalisation, smart industry or new digital

sovereignty is unimportant, but because relevance

services, none of these innovations can succeed without

determines where sovereignty truly matters.

robust infrastructure.

Those who are relevant have influence. Those who have

At the same time, there is growing recognition that

influence possess negotiating power. And those with

infrastructure is not merely an operational issue. Business

negotiating power have greater freedom to make their

leaders increasingly view it through a strategic lens. Not

own choices. Strategic autonomy is not achieved by

only because technology is becoming more important,

doing everything yourself. It is achieved by building a

but also because dependencies are becoming more

position that matters.

visible. The questions that arise concern continuity, availability, ownership and control. Ultimately, these are

For Europe, this means the debate should not focus

not technical questions. They are strategic choices.

solely on reducing dependencies. Equally important is identifying the areas in which we want to remain

Perhaps, then, we should spend less time talking about

distinctive. Where do we want to invest? Which

technological independence and more time talking about

knowledge do we want to retain? Which digital

strategic freedom of choice. Not because dependencies

capabilities do we consider strategic?

will disappear, but because organisations that preserve their ability to choose are ultimately better prepared for a world that is changing ever more rapidly.

In that sense, sovereignty is not an objective in itself. It is the ability to retain meaningful choices when they matter most.

“

STRATEGIC AUTONOMY IS NOT ACHIEVED BY DOING EVERYTHING YOURSELF. IT IS ACHIEVED BY BUILDING A POSITION THAT MATTERS.

Phaedra Kortekaas Managing Director, Eurofiber Netherlands Phaedra Kortekaas has been Managing Director of Eurofiber Netherlands since January 2026. Prior to joining Eurofiber, she held several senior leadership positions at IBM, including Country Manager for IBM Consulting. She subsequently served as Managing Director Benelux at SAS.

FROM BACKUP POWER TO ENERGY RESILIENCE INTEGRATOR THE CHANGING ROLE OF ENERGY IN DATA CENTERS The way data centers are powered is undergoing a fundamental transformation. For years, backup power was primarily about ensuring continuity during grid outages. Today, the focus is shifting towards integrated energy systems in which on-site generation, battery storage and microgrids play an increasingly important role.

“

THE BIGGEST CHANGE IS NOT THE TECHNOLOGY BEHIND THE GENERATORS THEMSELVES, BUT THE ROLE THESE INSTALLATIONS PLAY WITHIN THE OVERALL ENERGY ECOSYSTEM

According to Michael Spaargaren, Senior Account Manager Energy Solutions Zwart Techniek, that transition is already clearly visible in new projects. The biggest change is not the technology behind the generators

“Ultimately, you’re talking about a system that is hardly

themselves, but the role these installations play within

ever needed, but when it is, it simply has to work. That’s

the overall energy ecosystem.

why diesel remains the most logical choice for the foreseeable future.” He does, however, see Hydrotreated

“Backup power is gradually evolving into a form of on-site

Vegetable Oil (HVO) gaining ground rapidly. “We already

power generation,” says Spaargaren. “The grid is no longer

see organisations running entirely on HVO.”

something you can simply take for granted, nor is it as According to Spaargaren, it is equally important that the

reliable as it used to be.”

emergency power system is based on a different energy Despite growing attention for sustainable alternatives,

source from the primary power supply. If a data center

Spaargaren does not expect diesel generators to

relies largely on gas generators or a microgrid for its daily

disappear from data centers any time soon. For

operations, diesel remains an attractive independent

emergency backup, they remain the most robust

fallback. “The philosophy behind backup power is that

solution. Because backup systems are rarely called into

you don’t want two identical systems. A different system

action, reliability, availability and rapid start-up are more

always provides greater resilience.”

important than maximum efficiency.

FROM BACKUP TO CONTINUOUS POWER According to Spaargaren, the most significant shift is not

Spaargaren says this trend was initially driven by grid

the fuel itself but the function of the installation. Due to

congestion. His company originally developed these

grid congestion, generators are increasingly becoming

solutions for organisations that simply could not obtain

part of the day-to-day energy supply rather than serving

a grid connection. Today, the same challenges are

solely as emergency backup. “We’re now seeing data

increasingly emerging in the data center market.

centers being built without a grid connection at all. That’s where the phrase ‘bring your own power’ is becoming

“We’ve had a dedicated microgrids team for years.

increasingly common.”

Originally, it wasn’t focused on data centers but on organisations unable to secure a grid connection. Now we’re seeing exactly those same challenges reaching the

This requires a fundamentally different approach

data center sector.”

to traditional backup power. “That’s where we move towards continuous power. Gas generators provide part of the daily energy supply, diesel remains available for emergencies and battery systems absorb peak loads.”

MICROGRIDS BECOME MAINSTREAM

DATA CENTERS BECOME PART OF THE ENERGY SYSTEM

As a result, interest in microgrids continues to grow. While

According to Spaargaren, the position of data centers

the concept itself has a clear definition, its practical

within the energy infrastructure is also changing. Rather

implementation varies considerably. Depending on

than being viewed simply as large electricity consumers,

the location and energy requirements, a microgrid can

they are becoming active participants in the energy

operate completely independently or work closely

system itself.

alongside the public electricity grid.

This reflects a broader shift across the sector. Increasingly, attention is focused on how data centers can

“You can operate entirely off-grid, or you can simply

use energy more flexibly and contribute to a more stable

use your own generation when the grid falls short. Add

electricity grid. Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS)

batteries and backup power to the mix and you end up

have an important role to play, although Spaargaren

with many different types of microgrids.”

tempers expectations. “A battery doesn’t generate energy; it shifts energy consumption through time.”

This is by no means a uniquely Dutch development. “We work extensively in Frankfurt. There we’re already being

For data centers, however, the challenge differs from

asked whether we can provide continuous power. In

many other industries. Because power demand is

some cases, customers want to operate their own power

generally stable, batteries do not automatically deliver

generation for six or seven years until a permanent grid

major savings. Their greatest value lies in combining

connection becomes available.”

storage with on-site generation, peak-load management and grid flexibility services.

100

STRATEGIC INFRASTRUCTURE Ultimately, Spaargaren believes the energy debate is driven by one underlying development: the growing strategic importance of digital infrastructure. The rapid expansion of AI is making resilient energy supplies more critical than ever.

“We’re living through the fourth industrial revolution. AI is undoubtedly its most visible development. AI requires

HYDROGEN LOSES MOMENTUM

data centers, and every country now recognises that

Interestingly, Spaargaren believes hydrogen is becoming less

prominent.

Although

attracted

these facilities are critical infrastructure. That means their

significant

energy supply must also be treated as critical.”

attention only a few years ago, he sees practical realities slowing its adoption. “Hydrogen is gradually fading into

As a result, the discussion around power infrastructure is

the background. There are still major questions around

changing fundamentally. The question is no longer simply

availability and safety, and suppliers have become less

how a data center survives a power outage, but how it

enthusiastic. It’s still an interesting technology, but for

continues to operate within an increasingly dynamic

now it seems to have moved further into the future.”

electricity system. Backup power remains indispensable, yet it has become part of a much broader energy

That does not mean hydrogen has been ruled out

architecture in which on-site generation, energy storage,

altogether. Rather, the market is currently focusing on

flexibility and grid support work together.

technologies that are already commercially viable today: HVO-fuelled diesel generators, gas generators, battery

For system integrators such as Zwart Techniek, this

storage systems and a range of microgrid configurations.

represents a profound change in their field of work. For the data center industry as a whole, it marks the beginning of a new era in which energy is no longer merely a prerequisite, but an integral part of both data center design and its role in society.

101

HEAT REUSE IS ABOUT MORE THAN TECHNOLOGY Data centers generate a continuous stream of heat. Across Europe, that heat is increasingly seen as a potential energy source for homes, offices and industry. But turning that potential into useful energy requires more than heat-recovery equipment. According to Jo-Ann Garbutt, Chair of the Heat Reuse Platform on behalf of the European Data Centre Association (EUDCA), the challenge is connecting the right heat source to the right demand.

“Data center heat is a potential energy source, not simply a waste product,” says Garbutt. But producing heat is not the primary function of a data center. Facilities are designed to provide resilient digital infrastructure, so heat reuse must fit around reliability, cooling efficiency and customer requirements.

Recovering as much heat as possible should therefore not become an objective in itself. What matters is whether reuse reduces energy consumption and carbon emissions across the wider energy system. Pumps and heat pumps, for example, consume electricity and can worsen the reported PUE of a facility even when the overall energy balance improves. Any reporting or rating framework should ensure a facility isn’t penalised for the electricity it uses to make residual heat reusable - that’s a different thing from energy lost to inefficiency, and the two shouldn’t be assessed in the same way.

102

TECHNOLOGY IS NO LONGER THE MAIN OBSTACLE The technical possibilities for heat recovery are well understood. Garbutt sees the bigger challenge in bringing together a suitable heat source, consistent demand nearby, connecting infrastructure and a viable long-term business model.

Distance, temperature and seasonal demand all affect feasibility, as do infrastructure costs and the possible need for heat pumps. There is also an organisational challenge. Data center operators, heat network companies, municipalities and developers have different requirements, commercial interests and investment cycles. “Often, aligning those interests is harder than the engineering itself,” Garbutt says.

Potential suppliers and users of heat also need to find each other. That is one of the problems the Heat Reuse Platform aims to solve. The pan-European initiative, jointly developed by EUDCA, Euroheat & Power, Net Zero Innovation Hub, Open Compute Project, DC Byte and The Data Centre Heat Company, matches data centers with nearby heating networks and provides tools and guidance for assessing opportunities at an early stage.

The platform does not develop projects itself. Instead, it helps stakeholders determine whether further investigation makes sense. This also allows opportunities to be revisited later: infrastructure, heat demand, energy prices and policy incentives can change.

103

DIFFERENT MODELS ACROSS EUROPE European projects show there is no single model for successful heat reuse. Stockholm’s Open District Heating model allows multiple sources, including data centers, to supply excess heat to the district heating network. The Microsoft and Fortum development around Helsinki takes another approach: heat reuse was integrated into the project and location strategy from the outset.

For Garbutt, both illustrate the importance of looking beyond the data center. “Successful heat reuse is not simply about installing heat-recovery equipment.” Location, infrastructure, heat demand and commercial arrangements all need to fit together.

FROM OBLIGATION TO VIABLE PROJECTS European policy is pushing heat reuse higher up the agenda. Under the revised EU Energy Efficiency Directive, data centers with a total rated energy input above 1 MW must utilise waste heat unless this is technically or economically unfeasible. New and substantially refurbished facilities are also subject to cost-benefit assessments.

Garbutt believes implementation is now crucial. Regulation should help identify viable projects rather than turn heat reuse into a compliance exercise. Clear feasibility methodologies, information about heat demand and networks, streamlined permitting and, where appropriate, support for connecting infrastructure could help.

She also argues for a broader view of energy efficiency. Even additional electricity used by heat pumps may enable meaningful energy and emission reductions elsewhere. Reporting frameworks should recognise that system-level benefit. That is not a call to loosen standards, but to measure the right things. At the same time, feasibility must remain a genuine criterion. Garbutt supports the direction of the Directive and the ambition behind it. “Regulation can require operators to investigate and encourage heat reuse wherever a viable opportunity exists,” she says. “It cannot guarantee every project turns out to be technically and economically feasible.”

104

HEAT DEMAND ENTERS THE DESIGN PROCESS Heat reuse could increasingly influence where and how data cent are built. Proximity to district heating, industrial users, greenhouses and other potential off-takers may become a consideration earlier in site selection.

It remains only one factor. Power, connectivity, land, planning requirements, water availability where relevant, data center customer requirements and resilience remain fundamental. Facility design could nevertheless change, with cooling strategies increasingly taking the temperature and accessibility of recoverable heat into account.

For Garbutt, the biggest shift is one of timing. Instead of asking what can be done with the heat after a data center has been designed, operators can ask much earlier whether useful demand exists and whether the data center and heat system can be planned together.

That will not make heat reuse viable everywhere. But it could significantly increase the number of European projects where the technical, economic and energy-system arguments align.

Jo-Ann Garbutt Chair of the Heat Reuse Platform on behalf of the European Data Centre Association (EUDCA)

105

STOCKHOLM HEAT SUPPLIERS

APARTMENTS SUPPLIED ANNUALLY

30,000

STOCKHOLM’S HEAT SUPPLY FROM RECOVERED HEAT

3,5%

TARGET SHARE OF HEAT SUPPLY

10%

REVENUE FOR DATA CENTER OPERATORS

€170,000 MW/YEAR

APARTMENTS SUPPLIED WITH RECOVERED HEAT

11,000

CREATING A MARKET FOR HEAT Stockholm’s Open District Heating model allows data centers and other businesses to sell excess heat to the district heating system. By 2022, the programme worked with 20 suppliers and recovered enough heat for around 30,000 modern apartments annually.

According to Eurelectric, recovered heat represents approximately 3.5 percent of Stockholm’s heat supply, with an ambition to reach 10 percent. Data center operators can receive around €170,000 per MW of heat supplied annually.

More recent information from Stockholm Exergi refers to enough recovered heat for around 11,000 apartments. The figures relate to different reporting periods and scopes and are therefore not directly comparable.

106

HELSINKI DISTRICT HEATING DEMAND

40%

RESIDENTS COVERED

250,000

ECOVERABLE DATA CENTER HEAT REUSED

75%

ELECTRIC BOILER CAPACITY

200 MW

THERMAL STORAGE CAPACITY

800 MWH

EXPECTED HEAT DELIVERED ANNUALLY

800 GWH/YEAR

ESTIMATED COST OF HEAT PUMPS + PIPELINE INFRASTRUCTURE

€225 MILLION

HEAT REUSE AT INFRASTRUCTURE SCALE The Microsoft and Fortum project integrates data center heat into the district heating system. Once fully developed, it is expected to provide around 40 percent of district heating demand in Espoo, Kauniainen and Kirkkonummi, an area with around 250,000 residents.

Around 75 percent of recoverable data center heat is designed to enter the district heating system. The infrastructure includes 200 MW of electric boiler capacity and 800 MWh of thermal storage. With heat-pump upgrading, the system is expected to deliver around 800 GWh of heat annually.

The scale of the investment shows what heat reuse can require beyond the data center itself: the heat pumps and associated pipeline infrastructure are estimated to cost €225 million.

107

DATA AND ENERGY: TWO PILLARS OF THE DIGITAL ECONOMY Where should the data center of the future be built? For years, the answer revolved around the availability of land, fiber-optic connectivity, and access to the electricity grid.

The rapid rise of AI, grid congestion, and the energy transition are changing that equation. According to Kees Verhoeven, Strategic Advisor at the Dutch Data Center Association (DDA), data centers should no longer be viewed as standalone facilities that consume electricity, but as integral components of a broader energy system. “In many ways, data centers are energy companies.”

Verhoeven argues that digitalization and the energy transition are often treated as separate domains. As a result, the growth of digital infrastructure is portrayed as at odds with decarbonizing the energy system.

The DDA takes a different view. As demand for digital capacity increases, the association believes it makes more sense to develop energy and digital infrastructure together. This idea forms the foundation of what the DDA calls a data-energy cluster.

108

Kees Verhoeven Strategic Advisor, Dutch Data Center Association Kees Verhoeven is Strategic Advisor to the Dutch Data Center Association (DDA), where he focuses on the public and political positioning of the data center sector, digital infrastructure, and the relationship between technology, energy, and public policy.

Before joining the DDA, he served as a Member of the Dutch House of Representatives from 2010 to 2021. During his parliamentary career, he was the spokesperson on issues including the digital economy, innovation, privacy, telecommunications, and technology policy.

START WITH THE ENERGY In this approach, the starting point is not the data center itself, but the available energy source. In the Netherlands, offshore wind is the obvious candidate. Elsewhere, hydropower, nuclear or geothermal energy, or other renewable sources may play the same role. According to Verhoeven, the concept is not tied to any particular technology but represents a design principle. “The goal is to bring energy and data infrastructure together in an intelligent way.”

An energy-efficient data center is then developed around that energy source. Waste heat becomes part of the same system and can be reused for residential heating, greenhouse horticulture, swimming pools, or industrial processes. “The result is an integrated chain in which energy production, digital infrastructure, and heat reuse reinforce one another,” Verhoeven explains.

According to the former Member of Parliament, the concept extends well beyond the data center. Entire campuses can emerge around these locations, bringing together energy companies, technology firms, research institutes, and universities. “You’re not just clustering energy and data—you are creating an economic ecosystem.”

The DDA argues that this approach delivers more than additional IT capacity. Combining energy, digital infrastructure, and innovation can also accelerate regional economic development.

It also changes the way data centers are perceived. Rather than being seen solely as large electricity consumers, they can play a significant role in enabling new energy projects. “We need energy, but energy producers also need us as customers.”

Their continuous demand provides a stable market for renewable electricity. Verhoeven also sees opportunities to use the electricity grid more efficiently through dedicated substations, direct high-voltage connections, and other innovative grid solutions.

110

FROM CONCEPT TO POLICY AGENDA

THE REAL CHALLENGE IS ORGANIZATIONAL

Over the past several years, the DDA has developed the

According to Verhoeven, the greatest obstacle is no

concept of data-energy clusters and introduced it during

longer technological but institutional. Digital technology

the Dutch government’s study into the country’s future

evolves as a horizontal stack. Energy, semiconductors,

earning capacity, led by former ASML CEO Peter Wennink.

data centers, cloud platforms, software, and AI form an

The report has frequently been compared with Mario

interconnected chain in which every layer depends on

Draghi’s influential report on European competitiveness.

the one beneath it. “The technology stack is horizontal, while government is organized vertically in separate silos.”

According to Verhoeven, this has helped move the subject higher up the political agenda. “It started as an

Issues involving energy, spatial planning, economic

idea, then became a concept. Today, we are discussing

development, and digital infrastructure are typically

it with ministries, grid operators, energy companies, and

divided across different ministries, public authorities, and

potential locations to explore how it can be put into

implementing agencies. Developing data-energy clusters

practice.”

therefore requires not only technological innovation but also strong political and administrative leadership.

The ambition is to develop the first data-energy cluster during the current government term, creating a blueprint

In Verhoeven’s view, the challenge is one of governance.

for future projects.

Technology evolves across traditional sector boundaries, while governments still largely operate within separate policy domains.

A EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE Although many examples are drawn from the

This shifts the discussion from where the next data center

Netherlands, Verhoeven sees the concept as

should be built to a more fundamental question: how do

fundamentally international. “Every country has its own

you design energy infrastructure, digital infrastructure,

mix of energy resources and geographical opportunities,

and economic development as one integrated system?

but the underlying challenge is the same: how do you

According to the DDA, this makes the data-energy cluster

combine the growth of AI with a resilient energy system

not merely a Dutch concept, but a potential blueprint

and a competitive digital economy?”

for the next generation of digital infrastructure across Europe.

According to Verhoeven, the answer does not lie in planning energy projects and data centers separately, but in designing them together. “The cluster provides a framework that makes this development possible.”

111

FROM LARGE SCALE CONSUMER TO SYSTEM PARTNER The growth of digital infrastructure and the energy transition are becoming increasingly intertwined. At the same time, the Dutch power grid is reaching its limits. In this discussion, data centers are primarily viewed as major energy consumers. But what happens when we flip that line of reasoning on its head? How exactly can data centers contribute to a smarter and more flexible energy system?

That question sits at the heart of the Green Data Center

According to Andrew van der Haar, Senior Advisor at

Conference 2026 on Wednesday, November 4. Under

DDA, it’s time to give that role more concrete shape.

the theme “From Large Scale Consumer to System

Data centers operate almost entirely on electricity, which

Partner,” the Dutch Data Center Association (DDA) is

means the sector has developed a deep expertise in

bringing together the industry, energy companies, grid

energy infrastructure, continuity, and matching capacity

operators, government, and other stakeholders to explore

to demand. “The debate still tends to focus on how much

how digital and energy infrastructures can be better

electricity a data center uses. We want to take the next

connected.

step: what can a data center contribute to the energy system? Through flexibility, storage, waste heat, and local energy generation, the sector can become part of the solution.”

112

“

THE QUESTION IS NO LONGER WHETHER DATA CENTERS ARE PART OF THE ENERGY SYSTEM, BUT WHAT ROLE THEY’LL PLAY IN IT

FROM TECHNOLOGY TO PRACTICE Some of this isn’t futuristic at all. For instance, battery

Reality, however, doesn’t always keep pace with what’s

storage and flexibility can already absorb demand peaks

technically possible. As Van der Haar puts it: “The

and make smarter use of available grid capacity. Waste

technology is often ahead of the commercial and legal

heat from data centers is available today too, though heat

frameworks.”

networks, suitable off-takers, and a solid business case remain key conditions. Hydrogen could also find a place

During the Green Data Center Conference, the focus will

in hybrid energy setups.

therefore not only be on what technology is available, but above all on how it can be applied in practice.

These developments change how we think about a data

Which solutions can make a difference right now? What

center’s energy supply. Installations traditionally built to

agreements are needed to enable data centers to

guarantee operational reliability are increasingly taking on

truly function as part of the energy system? “We want

a second role. Given the right conditions, storage, backup

to shift the conversation from energy consumption to

power, and smart control systems can create value for the

mutual benefit and from an individual connection issue

wider energy system, not just within the data center itself.

to collaborative system development,” Van der Haar

But technology alone won’t get us there. For data centers

explains.

to genuinely become system partners, the relationships between data centers, grid operators, energy companies,

On November 4, the parties needed to make that happen

and governments need to change too. Energy generation,

will be in the room together. The question is no longer

storage, consumption, and heat will increasingly need to

whether data centers are part of the energy system, but

be treated as parts of one local or regional system.

what role they’ll play in it.

113

DATA CENTER SECTOR EVENTS 2026 TUE SEP

PLATFORM GLOBAL

WED SEP

DATA EXPO

WED SEP

DCD CONNECT LONDON

WED SEP

THE TECH CAPITAL APAC FINANCE FORUM

THU SEP

DATACENTER FORUM COPENHAGEN

WED OCT

DCN WARSAW

TUE OCT

CAPACITY EUROPE

MON OCT

TECHEX EUROPE (DATA CENTRE EXPO)

WED NOV

GREEN DATA CENTER CONFERENCE

ANTIBES

UTRECHT

LONDON

SINGAPORE

COPENHAGEN

WARSAW

LONDON

AMSTERDAM

UTRECHT

116

MON NOV

GARTNER IT SYMPOSIUM

WED NOV

DATA CENTRE WORLD

WED NOV

DATACENTRES IRELAND

WED NOV

TOUCHDOWN MIDDLE EAST

THU NOV

DCN ZURICH

WED DEC

CLOUD EXPO

THU OCT

DATACENTER FORUM STOCKHOLM

WED DEC

DCD GLOBAL AWARDS

KICKSTART EUROPE 2027

BARCELONA

PARIS

DUBLIN

ABU DABI

ZURICH

HOUTEN

STOCKHOLM

LONDON

2027 TUE FEB

AMSTERDAM

117

2027 16 & 17 FEBRUARY

AMSTERDAM RAI - WWW.KICKSTARTCONF.EU