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Data Center Energy Consumption: A Global Challenge

Being particularly energy-intensive, the data center industry accounts for around 4% of global electricity consumption (1) and 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions (2). Every year, IT infrastructure operators need to adapt to the  steadily increasing growth in digital transactions resulting in challenging demands on energy supplies. There is a continuous need to develop more data storage and management capacity, where the volume of stored data in 2025 is expected to be 5.3 times more than in 2018 (3). 
To keep pace with the growth in IT activity, major digital operators have been implementing ambitious plans for several years aimed at achieving carbon neutrality, an area where ENGIE is no different in its ambitions.

With a focus on green data centers and ensuring it contributes to the performance of digital infrastructures as part of a carbon-neutral trajectory, ENGIE has made several commitments to support its customers’ sustainability, with a current renewable capacity of 34.4 GW, and the goal to reach 80 GW by 2030.
 The company has also implemented 23 GW worth of low carbon distributed energy infrastructure projects (including District Heating & Cooling schemes) with an aim to push this to 31 GW by 2025, as well as 4 GW of green Hydrogen capacity by 2030. 

What does it actually mean to be green?

A data center cannot be said to be truly green if it is not consuming 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy (CFE). This can be achieved through a combination of grid supplied power (such as off-site corporate power purchase agreements), renewable onsite generation (solar panels, wind turbines, …) and renewable energy  backup, as well as thermal and/or electrical energy storage.
To reach this objective, we need to exit the classic scenario of connecting data centers to national electricity and water networks, and to be looking towards microgrids. A microgrid is a resilient local energy grid, able to operate in grid-connected or in island mode, incorporating interconnected loads and distributed energy resources (e.g. generators/turbines, renewables, energy storage systems).

Community support is also a key role of the green data center, achieved by integrating the data center utilities into the local energy ecosystem. In the same vein, the connection between the microgrid power distribution system and the main power grid will, in certain countries, enable data centers to provide grid stabilization services such as demand side reduction and firm frequency response.

With its engagement in local or national network supplies of renewable energy, energy storage, energy from waste, and demand side reduction, ENGIE's expertise is perfectly aligned for the roadmap to carbon neutrality. We support major global players in the Cloud market, as well as other specialists in the Data Center industry (Co-location / Hosting), telecoms operators and organizations for whom data management is critical.

Your one-stop shop, with integrated energy solutions at every step of the value chain

ENGIE is committed to accelerating the transition towards a carbon-neutral world with integrated low-carbon and high-performance solutions that enable the design and operation of a reliable, sustainable, agile and energy-efficient data center. Our local teams can support you around the globe, bringing innovative and unrivalled sector expertise to the Design, Build, Operations and Maintenance of the Data Centers’ energy infrastructures, including :

• On-site renewable energy production
• Green back-up
• Storage
• Waste heat recovery

Combined with green energy supply capabilities, we are able to effectively support the data center industry in achieving its objective of 24/7 carbon-neutrality.
 

To go further :
 

>> Will decarbonization impact future data center design? <<

>> Actions over (buzz)words <<

>> How do microgrids support net-zero carbon data center objectives <<

>> Case Study: Creating the microgrid of the future <<

>> The crucial role of data centers in the health crisis <<

(1) Source : Wavestone
(2) Source : lebigdata.fr
(3) Source : internetworldstats.com (i.e. 175 zettabytes)