A significant sustainability project for its Groningen colocation data center in the Netherlands has been launched by QTS Data Centers, a supplier of business, hyperscale, and government data center solutions in the U.S. and Europe. QTS would be the first to provide residual heat for such a large-scale sustainable district heating project in collaboration with WarmteStad, a sustainable utility provider for the municipality of Groningen.
Recently, WarmteStad finished building a “cutting-edge” heating facility that will utilize all of the leftover heat from the QTS Groningen colocation data center. Through an existing subterranean heating network that has been established in the city of Groningen, heat pumps that are driven by renewable energy offer hot water.
By 2026, WarmteStad is expected to supply sustainable and economical heat for more than 10,000 homes, businesses, and educational institutions in Groningen’s northern districts. Buildings across the city of Groningen may be heated with water without a natural gas line, which would greatly lower CO2 emissions and help Groningen achieve its environmental objective of being CO2 neutral by 2035.
Sustainable Heating
The QTS Groningen Data Center (formerly TCN), was built in 2001. All energy used by the data center is generated by Hydropower and is carbon neutral. In addition, they are by far the largest heat supplier to WarmteStad. Through this system, all residual heat is delivered back to households in the city of Groningen.
“QTS has quickly established itself as an important member of the Groningen business community and key contributor to the sustainable district heating project,” said Dick Takkebos, Director at WarmteStad. “We applaud their commitment to re-purposing expended data center heat into reliable, affordable and also sustainable heating solutions for the long term.”
“We are pleased to be the first to deliver our residual heat as part of WarmteStad’s program in support of over 10,000 households, companies- and university buildings in Groningen with cost-effective heating solutions,” said Travis Wright, Vice President of Energy and Sustainability at QTS. “QTS has committed to minimizing its data center carbon footprint through innovative solutions including the utilization of renewable energy, reclaimed water, and recycled materials to support both QTS and our customers’ sustainability initiatives.”
