CWC releases the report "Meeting the energy needs of Data Centres: What role for cogeneration?"

According to a new report published by the COGEN World Coalition, the global growth and spread of data centres creates a significant opportunity for companies involved in cogeneration – also known as combined heat and power (CHP). This is because cogeneration represents a reliable and efficient means of providing all the electricity that a data centre needs, plus a continuous supply of heat, which can be used to drive absorption chillers that provide the cooling capacity required to prevent servers and other equipment from overheating.

The newly-published report Meeting the energy needs of Data Centres: What role for cogeneration?  was produced for the COGEN World Coalition by Challoch Energy. This comprehensive report brings together relevant data and information from a wide range sources including the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the European Commission.

According to the report, there are almost 11,000 data centre locations worldwide, and nearly half of these are in the USA. According to the US Department of Energy, data centres are projected to account for around 9% of the nation’s total electricity use by the year 2030. In the Republic of Ireland, data centres already account for 21% of metered electricity consumption.

The use of cogeneration to provide electricity and cooling capacity for data centres is currently limited but has significant potential for growth as the industry seeks more efficient and sustainable energy solutions.

The benefits of cogeneration in the context of data centres include:

• Significant cost savings when cogeneration is used as the primary source of power

• Flexibility in the design and operation of a data centre

• Enhanced energy efficiency and reduced energy consumption

• Improved reliability, resilience and energy security

Read the report here: Meeting the energy needs of Data Centres: What role for cogeneration?