Polarnode, a Finnish data centre developer that focuses on environmentally sustainable data centre construction and operation, has announced the appointment of Lauri Ikonen as its new Head of Technology, effective from 1 September.
The appointment comes as the company accelerates its growth strategy to aim to become a leading data centre platform across the Nordic region.
Ikonen joins Polarnode at a time of increasing demand for data centre capacity across the Nordics. He brings more than two decades of experience in large-scale infrastructure, with a particular focus on mission-critical operations, backup power, and cooling technologies.
From 2016 to 2023, Ikonen held a series of senior roles at Google’s data centre organisation, including Site Lead and Site Operations Manager at the company’s Hamina campus in Finland. During this period, the site expanded significantly, and daily operations grew to support approximately 400 personnel.
More recently, he served as Chief Strategy and Operating Officer at UpCloud, where he was responsible for strategic management, operational oversight, and service reliability across 13 global data centre locations.
His earlier career includes leadership roles in ABB’s Power Division, where he worked on industrial-scale infrastructure and service management.
“We are thrilled to welcome Lauri to the team,” says Mikko Toivanen, Chair of the Board at Polarnode.
“His deep experience in managing and scaling hyperscale data centre infrastructure will be instrumental as we accelerate our development strategy and respond to the growing market need for high-performance, sustainable, and resilient data centre capacity.”
In his new role, Ikonen will lead Polarnode’s technology strategy and oversee the design and implementation of upcoming sites. He will also guide the company’s entry into colocation services, supporting its long-term ambition to deliver clean, high-performance infrastructure to support the growing digital economy.
“The Nordic region is rapidly becoming a global hub for digital infrastructure,” comments Lauri. “Polarnode is well positioned to lead that transformation with its forward-thinking approach. I’m excited to contribute to its next phase of growth.”
Polarnode is 100% Finnish-owned and has so far announced major data centre developments in Lappeenranta, Nokia, and Pori.
