Kao Data, the home of innovation and one of the UK’s leading entrants to the wholesale colocation data centre market, has announced it will operate using 100% renewable energy and be cost neutral to its customers. When the campus is operating at full load (43.5MVA), this will effectively reduce CO2 emissions by +80,000 tons per annum, the equivalent of removing +30,000 vehicles from the road.
By today’s standards, many legacy data centres and colocation providers are unable to provide the same level of technological advancement, scalability and low cost of operations as those built on innovative hyperscale principles. Kao’s commitment to innovation and continuous improvement, providing renewable energy at a zero-price premium, ensures that customers are not compromised in their requirements for multi-tariff energy options.
Paul Finch, COO, Kao Data, said: “Although the industry can evidence tremendous improvements in operational efficiency over the last decade, data centres will continue to be an increasing consumer of power driven by consumer demand. The EU Commission recently concluded that by 2030 annual energy consumption relating to servers and infrastructure is forecast to rise to 75TWh. It is Kao Data’s belief that we need to work closely with our supply chain to ensure renewable energy remains fully accessible, promoting sustainability and strong industry stewardship.”
The data centre market is irrevocably linked to the utility industry. There are very few people in the developed world that are not dependent on the data streaming through these buildings or on the energy coursing through the power lines linking our homes, work and communities together. As such, data centres are increasingly becoming more sustainably developed and powered, something that is fundamental to Kao Data’s corporate social responsibility ethos.
Kao Data’s campus is engineered to be highly efficient, utilising 100% ‘free-cooling’ to reduce the complexity of both the mechanical and electrical systems. This results in an ultra-low PUE even at very low customer IT utilisation. Achieving 100% renewable energy use is a long-standing commitment and demonstrates the effectiveness of Kao Data’s business processes and responsibility to improve operational performance, provide increased assurance and reduce the environmental impact of the business.
