Build

Aligned’s Phoenix data centre earns Three Green Globes

Aligned Data Centers, a technology infrastructure company, has announced its latest Phoenix data centre to receive the Green Globes for New Construction certification from the Green Building Initiative (GBI). Aligned’s PHX-06 data centre received a rating of Three Green Globes for its success in resource efficiency, environmental impact reduction, and improvements in occupant wellness. “As the global demand for AI and high-performance computing continues to accelerate, we’re continuously looking for new ways to increase the efficiency and sustainability of our data centres, even as we keep pace with and anticipate the growth of that demand,” states Andrew Schaap, CEO of Aligned. “GBI's third-party review of PHX-06 resulted in an award of [the] Three Green Globes certification, which is a testament to our relentless pursuit of sustainable excellence. "This recognition not only validates the exceptionally high standards we set for environmentally responsible design and construction, but also underscores our unmatched speed of delivery, which enables massive, future-proof scalability across the Americas. Despite continuous innovation and ever-higher standards, Aligned remains the highest certifying data centre in the programme.” Aligned's Three Green Globes achievement for PHX-06 was driven by factors like reduced water usage, efficient cooling, and 100% renewable power. Another contributing factor to its certification is the company’s Adaptive Modular Infrastructure (AMI), which uses standardised, prefabricated modules for various building components. AMI seeks to sustainably accelerate deployment timelines and minimise waste by relying on repeatable manufacturing processes that produce fewer components and cut down on Scope 3 emissions through reduced onsite construction. “Achieving this level of sustainability is an outstanding accomplishment and Aligned should be proud of the strategies applied to the design and construction of this facility,” comments Vicki Worden, GBI CEO. “We look to data centre owner-operators to be responsible stewards of the planet’s resources, and Aligned continues to demonstrate its leadership in sustainability with its exceptional outcomes in energy efficiency, water conservation, carbon emissions reduction, and occupant health.” Founded in 2004, GBI is an international nonprofit organisation and American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Accredited Standards Developer dedicated to improving the built environment’s impact on climate and society. GBI’s Green Globes third-party certification process involves a design and onsite assessment, evaluating environmental assessment areas including project management, site, energy, water, resources, emissions, and indoor environment. For more from Aligned, click here.

EfficiencyIT announces partnership with MSSL

EfficiencyIT, a technology and data centre company providing consultancy, design and build services, and maintenance support, has today announced a formal partnership with Michael Smith Switchgear (MSSL), a UK-based manufacturer of sustainable electrical control and distribution equipment. With the intention to meet soaring demand for secure, scalable, and eco-conscious modular AI infrastructure in the UK and Europe, the alliance unites EfficiencyIT’s data centre engineering experience with MSSL’s switchgear manufacturing and installation capabilities. Building on EfficiencyIT’s ModularDC solutions and aligning with the UK Government’s recently published AI Opportunities Action Plan, the partnership seeks to help organisations across the governmental, enterprise, and life sciences sectors deploy resilient, scalable AI compute environments while achieving increases in sustainability. By collaborating from concept to delivery, EfficiencyIT and MSSL aim to reduce the time-to-deployment, cost, and environmental impact typically associated with accelerated computing infrastructure for HPC (high-performance computing) and artificial intelligence (AI) workloads. A partnership founded on sustainability Both EfficiencyIT and MSSL place an emphasis on sustainable innovation. EfficiencyIT holds PlanetMark accreditation and was recently recognised by its partner, Schneider Electric, as one of 16 EcoXpert partners globally for its sustainability impact. In recognition of its ongoing engagement in sustainable critical infrastructure operations, the company was also awarded a Royal Warrant of Appointment into the Place and Quality of Supplier of IT Infrastructure Services by His Majesty King Charles III, recognising the company's delivery of sustainable IT infrastructure to the British Royal Household. MSSL, meanwhile, is also a Schneider Electric Sustainability Impact Award winner and has spearheaded multiple sustainability initiatives in recent years, halving its carbon footprint, introducing renewable energy programs, and achieving carbon-neutral status for the first time in 2022. This track record has resulted in the company’s recognition through accolades and government case studies, most notably during COP26. Most recently, MSSL was honoured with The King’s Award for Enterprise for Sustainable Development, highlighting its long-term commitment to sustainability in manufacturing. The new channel partnership aims to give customers access to prefabricated data centre systems manufactured and integrated in the UK, including next-generation UPS, low-voltage (LV) switchgear, and power equipment. Additionally, by sourcing and manufacturing ModularDC systems in the UK, both companies aim to help customers decarbonise the supply chain by reducing Scope 3 emissions, strengthening local supply networks, and aligning with the UK government’s call for “sufficient, secure and sustainable infrastructure foundations for AI.” A shared commitment to decarbonisation “As demand for AI infrastructure intensifies, the data centre industry cannot afford to compromise on security, sustainability, or resilience,” argues Nick Ewing, Managing Director at EfficiencyIT. “By formalising our partnership with Michael Smith Switchgear, we’re ensuring that organisations across the public and private sectors can rapidly scale their data centre and AI compute environments without compromising on environmental commitments, supply chain security, or regulatory compliance.” Sean Smith, Managing Director at MSSL, comments, “EfficiencyIT shares our passion for environmental stewardship and supporting UK-based manufacturing with the highest standards of sustainability. Our combined experience provides a powerful proposition for customers looking to accelerate their AI and high-powered data centre, energy, or electrical projects, and we look forward to collaborating to help meet and exceed these ambitions.” For more from EfficiencyIT, click here.

Datum launches second Manchester data centre, MCR2

UK data centre provider Datum Datacentres has officially launched MCR2, its newest data centre in Manchester, marking a milestone for both the company and the region’s £500 million regeneration initiative. The well-attended opening ceremony took place on Thursday, 26 June and celebrated the completion of the almost two-year construction project, signalling a boost for Manchester’s position as a UK tech hub. The ribbon was cut by Emma Taylor, Labour Councillor for the Sharston Ward, and the event was attended by distinguished guests including members of Manchester City Council, who collaborated closely with Datum throughout the project. Their joint efforts sought to ensure the facility aligns with the goals of Wythenshawe's ongoing regeneration, creating a resource to support the community's sustainable growth and innovation. Commenting on the launch, Matt Edgley, COO at Datum Datacentres, says, “We are thrilled to have officially opened MCR2. From the outset, our vision for MCR2 was to set new standards in operational resilience and reliability while embedding sustainability at its core. This facility stands as a testament to our commitment to fostering positive social and environmental change, supporting the local economy and playing an active role in the regeneration of Wythenshawe.” MCR2 was built in response to Manchester’s rapidly growing demand for data centre infrastructure. The new facility provides capacity for up to 1,200 racks, each capable of up to 30kW power delivery on dual circuits, supported by 2N level resilience. MCR2 offers a design PUE of 1.25, a 100% power availability SLA, and a focus on sustainability, security, and "operational excellence." Security is further bolstered by the inclusion of an on-site police-linked Alarm Receiving Centre and the site’s NSI Gold certification (BS5979 SOC). Emma Taylor, Labour Councillor for the Sharston Ward, comments, “Data centres are a critical part of our data infrastructure in Manchester and, as anchors for investment, play a really important part in supporting local growth. This multimillion pound investment by Datum really demonstrates the confidence in the region and I’m really excited for what the future holds. As someone who grew up just metres from the site of what is now MCR2, I’d like to thank the team at Datum for bringing a bit of life back into the fringes of Wythenshawe town centre.” Datum’s design and construction partner Keysource delivered the facility. Jon Healy, Managing Director at Keysource, a Salute company, adds, “It’s been great to deliver on another successful project with Datum Datacentres. We set out to challenge the status quo and drive the highest possible standards across the project design, construction, and sustainability. Collaboration between Datum and Keysource has been at the fore to deliver on key business drivers and is testament to our talented people involved. We look forward to the next project.” For more from Datum Datacentres, click here.

Puglia 'Data Center Valley' set to become biggest AI hub in Europe

Puglia, a region of southern Italy located at the 'heel' of the peninsula, is seeking to redefine the digital landscape of the Mediterranean with the creation of the Puglia Data Center Valley, a development program that brings together three AI hyperscale data centre projects totalling more than 2 GW of power capacity. Data centre company Adriatic DC’s plans include the redevelopment of Bari’s former Manifattura Tabacchi industrial area into a 200 MW data centre, the development of a second 500 MW greenfield facility in Brindisi’s industrial area, and the Adriatic DC Hub, a 1.5 GW greenfield campus spanning 2,000 acres. Said hub is set to become the largest data centre complex currently under development in Europe and among the largest in the world, on par with the Stargate campus in the United States. This initiative arises from an unprecedented global demand for computing power - driven by the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) - and aims to position Southern Italy at the heart of this epochal transformation. The overall strategy rests on solid infrastructural foundations. Puglia is the leading Italian region for electricity production from renewable sources, boasts operational international submarine digital backbones, and will soon be connected to the new Italy–Albania energy cable, designed to further strengthen the flow of renewable energy along the Adriatic corridor. In this context, the Regional Government of Puglia has established an interdepartmental working group on data centres, tasked with effectively coordinating permitting processes, defining technical guidelines, and facilitating dialogue with local authorities, thereby offering operators guidance and a dedicated institutional channel. "The Puglia Data Center Valley was created to place Southern Italy and Southern Europe at the centre of the new geopolitics of artificial intelligence," states Lorenzo Avello, CEO of Adriatic DC. "Global demand for computing power is growing at record rates. Our goal is to build an industrial platform capable of attracting strategic investment to projects with reliable execution timelines, generating skilled employment, and strengthening both European digital sovereignty and national data security. "Puglia offers industrial land availability, energy networks targeted for major future development by the TSO, global submarine digital links, and a favourable institutional environment - a rare and unique mix in Europe. We are firmly convinced that the south can position itself in the new global chessboard of artificial intelligence.” The first construction sites are scheduled to break ground by the end of 2026, with an initial investment phase of approximately €2 billion (£1.72 billion) for the first project. However, estimates suggest that, once fully operational, the total investment across the three projects - including direct, indirect, and infrastructure-related components - could exceed €100 billion (£85.88 billion) - an unprecedented level of capital for Southern Italy. The anticipated impacts include thousands of direct and indirect jobs, as well as the creation of new industrial supply chains in the ICT sector, such as AI-as-a-Service and cybersecurity. In a Europe that must accelerate toward strategic autonomy, digital resilience, and decarbonisation, the Puglia Data Center Valley seeks to position itself as an active platform, ready to engage with stakeholders in the global technological transformation.

Data centre district heating project delivered at QMUL

Schneider Electric, a player in energy management and automation, and its EcoXpert Partner, Advanced Power Technology (APT), have delivered a data centre modernisation project at the Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). Together, the companies have created a platform for heat recovery at the University’s data centre, enabling waste heat from the facility to be connected to a campus-wide district heating network, providing heating and hot water for the buildings and student accommodation nearby. The project both reduces the campus' scope one CO2 emissions - in line with Queen Mary’s sustainability goals - and has also allowed it to reduce the costs of its energy bills. Furthermore, the new energy-efficient data centre has provided the university with increased resiliency and processing power for its on-premises, large-scale research and intensive computing applications, helping it to provision for future expansion. Queen Mary University of London is ranked 94th in the world in the 2025-26 edition of the US News and World Report Best Global Universities rankings, and today has over 32,000 students from more than 170  nationalities and 5,700 staff - with nine Nobel Prize winners among its former staff and students. It says it is committed to conducting "world-leading research" and adheres to the principles of sustainable development across all areas of its operational and academic activities. Its vision is to create and oversee the evolution of a large-scale distributed computing infrastructure needed to maintain the UK’s position as a world leader in particle physics. As such, the university is a participant in the Grid for Particle Physics (GridPP) project, a collaborative effort among particle physicists, computer scientists, and engineers to analyse data generated by high-energy physics experiments, such as those conducted at the world-famous Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN in Switzerland. The size, scale, and importance of this work means that the university must operate and maintain a highly-efficient, on-premises data centre - ensuring it meets the technical requirements of existing and future research developments, especially those requiring High Throughput Computing (HTC) applications. Prior to the modernisation project, Queen Mary’s data centre was experiencing reliability, scalability, and availability issues which required manual, on-site interventions to fix. It was also becoming outdated and its operations were, at times, impacted due to a build-up of heat in its server racks from its inefficient cooling systems. Future research computing may also have been hindered due to the data centre’s hosting limitations. The refresh was, therefore, vital to improve and stabilise day-to-day operations. In addition, its proximity to the campus’ district heating network presented an opportunity for a new solution be designed and implemented to bring the data centre in line with the university’s sustainability goals. Schneider Electric’s data centre, power, and cooling solutions were already installed across Queen Mary’s estate, so when it came to the plans to upgrade its operations, the university directly sought help from Schneider Electric’s partner ecosystem. Schneider Electric’s long-standing EcoXpert Partners, Advanced Power Technology (APT), an independent supplier of critical power and cooling systems, was selected to help Queen Mary meet its modernisation and sustainability goals. Key to the strategy was the integration of components including Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Row Data Centre system. It also incorporated APC NetShelter Racks, APC NetBotz environmental monitoring equipment, InRow cooling, and EcoStruxure Data Centre Expert software. The new configuration provided by APT, according to Schneider Electric, delivered a more energy-efficient cooling solution and enabled the heat recovery to support the university’s sustainability strategy – allowing Queen Mary to transfer waste heat and reuse it directly for heating and hot water across various buildings, including student accommodation, via a district heating system. Professor Jonathan Hays, Queen Mary University of London, comments, “The support we've had from APT and Schneider Electric has been unparalleled. Both companies came together to help us develop an exciting and innovative project which would enable us to provision for the future. The biggest impact is that we were able to deliver on what we promised while improving our sustainability. The new data centre is more reliable and efficient than ever and, through the heat recovery, we have significantly reduced our spending on heating and hot water while gaining enhanced reputational benefits from taking a lead on sustainability within our data centre operations.” “The project at Queen Mary demonstrates how digital infrastructure can be a catalyst for net zero, allowing today’s organisations to benefit from the power of advanced computing,” adds Mark Yeeles, Vice President, Secure Power division, Schneider Electric UK & Ireland. “By combining innovative engineering with sustainable data centre solutions, the university has developed an enhanced infrastructure platform that will meet its research computing requirements while supporting its sustainability strategy.” “Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Data Centre solutions were essential to help Queen Mary bring together its power, cooling, racks, and management systems, and support the deployment of its high-density IT equipment needed for its research,” claims John Andrew, Technical Sales Manager, APT. “This approach also created a platform to support its sustainability objectives via heat reuse, while enabling the University to act proactively and preventatively to intercept and remediate potential future issues.” For more from Schneider Electric, click here.

Bitrise first mobile DevOps platform to launch data centre in EU

Bitrise, a mobile DevOps platform, today announced plans to launch a data centre in the Netherlands in a response to increased demand for data residency in the European Union (EU). The new data centre will be the first in the EU operated by a DevOps platform, aiming to provide businesses with a fully-hosted and managed solution to meet the stringent data security and compliance requirements of the region. Bitrise will invest $3 million (£2.2 million) in the project, supporting the anticipated 22% year-on-year growth in European data centre capacity in 2025 as the continent focuses on operational resilience and data sovereignty. “In an era of geopolitical volatility and increasing regulatory complexity, mobile innovation in Europe demands sovereignty, speed, and security,” announces Barnabás Birmacher, CEO and Co-founder of Bitrise. “By launching the first EU-hosted DevOps platform, Bitrise is giving customers total control over their data, ensuring compliance and empowering them to scale development faster and more securely.” This investment in an Amsterdam-based data centre marks a step forwards in enhancing support for EU customers. By replicating the data centre model used in the US, Bitrise intends to deploy the same high-performance Apple M4 and Linux-based infrastructure in Europe, allowing businesses to choose their data residency and meet risk and compliance requirements. This expansion is a direct response to the growing demand from EU-based companies and global brands operating in the region. By strengthening data security and sovereignty, customers should have access to the tools they need to scale development securely and stay competitive in a rapidly changing market. “With data sovereignty becoming a critical priority for European businesses, Bitrise’s move to launch an EU-based data centre couldn’t be more timely," comments Reza Malekzadeh, General Partner at Partech and Bitrise board member. "Bitrise is setting a new standard for DevOps in Europe by giving companies the ability to meet stringent regulatory requirements without compromising on speed or innovation.” Recent regulatory changes and international data transfer challenges have created a complex environment for companies operating across borders. The data centre market in Europe is estimated to grow by $291.7 billion (£214.3 billion) from 2024 to 2028, driven by demand for local data processing and storage solutions. European companies in security-sensitive and regulated industries often rely on cloud providers in the US or spend millions to build their own local infrastructure. This has created a major gap in the market for compliant, hosted solutions. “We recognise the critical need for sovereign hosting solutions for mobile CI/CD infrastructure in the EU,” Barnabás says. “This move not only strengthens our presence in Europe, but underscores our commitment to solving the complex challenges our partners face, allowing them to innovate and scale without compromise.” Bitrise’s Amsterdam data centre will, according to the company, emulate Bitrise’s existing infrastructure model, providing:• Access to the fastest Apple Silicon and Linux machines for iOS and Android.• Advanced physical and network security measures.• Full compliance with EU data protection standards.• High-speed connectivity to ensure rapid build times. The data centre will support all Bitrise products and services, aiming to allow customers to build, test, and automate their applications without source code ever leaving the EU. In contrast to the majority of DevOps providers with US-only hosting capabilities, Bitrise’s expansion, the company claims, creates a DevOps platform that caters to data residency and digital operational resilience requirements. “By filling this gap in the market, we’re addressing a critical need for businesses throughout the EU,” Barnabás continues. “Our ability to quickly deploy and scale infrastructure based on our successful US model allows us to move fast and establish a strong presence in this underserved market.”

InfraPartners launches Advanced Research and Engineering

InfraPartners, a designer and builder of prefabricated AI data centres, today announced the launch of a new research function, InfraPartners Advanced Research and Engineering. Led by recent hire Bal Aujla, previously the Global Head of Innovation Labs at BlackRock, InfraPartners has assembled a team of experts based in Europe and the US to act as a resource for AI innovation in the data centre industry. The function seeks to foster industry collaboration to provide forward-looking insights and thought leadership. AI demand is driving a surge in new global data centre builds, which are projected to triple by 2030. AI-specific infrastructure is expected to drive approximately 70% of this growth. Additionally, regulation, regionalisation, and geopolitical shifts are reshaping infrastructure needs. As a result, operators are looking at new ways to meet these changes with solutions that deliver scale, schedule certainty, and accelerated time-to-value while improving sustainability and avoiding technology obsolescence. InfraPartners Advanced Research and Engineering intends to accelerate data centre innovation by identifying and focusing on the biggest opportunities and challenges of this next wave of AI-driven growth. With plans for Gigawatts (GWs) of data centre builds globally and projected investments reaching nearly $7 trillion (£5.15 trillion), the impact of new innovation will be significant. Through partnerships with industry experts, regulators, and disruptive newcomers, the InfraPartners Advanced Research and Engineering team aims to foster a community where ideas and research can be shared to grow data centre knowledge, capabilities, and opportunities. These efforts will aim to advance the digital infrastructure sector as a whole. “At InfraPartners, our new research function represents the deliberate convergence of expertise from across the AI and data centre ecosystem. We’re bringing together professionals with diverse perspectives and backgrounds in artificial intelligence, data centre architecture, power infrastructure, and capital allocation to address the evolving needs of AI and the significant value it can bring to the world,” says Bal Aujla, Director, Head of Advanced Research and Engineering at InfraPartners. “This integrated team approach enables us to look at opportunities and challenges from end-to-end and across every layer of the stack. We’re no longer approaching digital infrastructure as a siloed engineering challenge. Instead, the new team will focus on the initiatives that have the most impact on transforming data centre architecture and creating business value.” InfraPartners Advanced Research and Engineering says it has developed a new design philosophy that prioritises flexibility, upgradeability, and rapid refresh cycles. Called the 'Upgradeable Data Center,' this design, it claims, future-proofs data centre investments and enables greater resilience and sustainability in a fast-changing digital landscape. “The Upgradeable Data Center reflects the fact data centres must now be built to evolve. In a world where GPU generations shift every 12–18 months and designs change significantly each time, it is no longer viable to build static infrastructure which has decades-long refresh cycles. Our design approach enables operators to deploy the latest GPUs and upgrade data centre infrastructure in a seamless way,” notes Harqs Singh, Chief Technology Officer at InfraPartners. In its first white paper, Data Centers Transforming at the pace of Technology change, the team explores the rapid growth of AI workloads and its impact on digital infrastructure, including the GPU technology roadmap, increasing rack densities, and the implications for the modern data centre. It highlights the economic risks and commercial opportunities emerging from these trends and introduces how the Upgradeable Data Center is seeking to enable new data centres to transform at the pace of technology change. InfraPartners' model is to build 80% of the data centre offsite and 20% onsite, helping address key industry challenges like skilled labour shortages and power constraints, whilst aligning infrastructure investment with business agility and long-term growth.

IBM, RIKEN unveil first Quantum System Two outside of the US

IBM, an American multinational technology corporation, and RIKEN, a national research laboratory in Japan, have unveiled the first IBM Quantum System Two ever to be deployed outside of the United States and beyond an IBM quantum data centre. The availability of this system also marks a milestone as the first quantum computer to be co-located with RIKEN's supercomputer, Fugaku — one of the most powerful classical systems on Earth. This effort is supported by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organisation (NEDO), an organisation under the jurisdiction of Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI)'s 'Development of Integrated Utilisation Technology for Quantum and Supercomputers' as part of the 'Project for Research and Development of Enhanced Infrastructures for Post 5G Information and Communications Systems.' IBM Quantum System Two at RIKEN is powered by IBM's 156-qubit IBM Quantum Heron, one of the company's quantum processors. IBM Heron's quality as measured by the two-qubit error rate, across a 100-qubit layered circuit, is 3x10-3 — which, the company claims, is 10 times better than the previous generation 127-qubit IBM Quantum Eagle. IBM Heron's speed, as measured by the CLOPS (circuit layer operations per second) metric, is 250,000, which would reflect another 10 times improvement in the past year over IBM Eagle. At a scale of 156 qubits, with these quality and speed metrics, Heron is the most performant quantum processor in the world. This latest Heron is capable of running quantum circuits that are beyond brute-force simulations on classical computers, and its connection to Fugaku will enable RIKEN teams to use quantum-centric supercomputing approaches to push forward research on advanced algorithms, such as fundamental chemistry problems. The new IBM Quantum System Two is co-located with Fugaku within the RIKEN Center for Computational Science (R-CCS), one of Japan's high-performance computing (HPC) centres. The computers are linked through a high-speed network at the fundamental instruction level to form a proving ground for quantum-centric supercomputing. This low-level integration aims to allow RIKEN and IBM engineers to develop parallelised workloads, low-latency classical-quantum communication protocols, and advanced compilation passes and libraries. Because quantum and classical systems will ultimately offer different computational strengths, this hopes to allow each paradigm to perform the parts of an algorithm for which it is best suited. This new development expands IBM's global fleet of quantum computers and was officially launched during a ribbon-cutting ceremony today (24 June 2025) in Kobe, Japan. The event featured opening remarks from RIKEN President Makoto Gonokami; Jay Gambetta, IBM Fellow and Vice President of IBM Quantum; Akio Yamaguchi, General Manager of IBM Japan; as well as local parliament members and representatives from the Kobe Prefecture and City, METI, NEDO, and MEXT. "The future of computing is quantum-centric and with our partners at RIKEN we are taking a big step forward to make this vision a reality," claims Jay Gambetta, VP, IBM Quantum. "The new IBM Quantum System Two, powered by our latest Heron processor and connected to Fugaku, will allow scientists and engineers to push the limits of what is possible." "By combining Fugaku and the IBM Quantum System Two, RIKEN aims to lead Japan into a new era of high-performance computing," says Mitsuhisa Sato, Division Director of the Quantum-HPC Hybrid Platform Division, RIKEN Center for Computational Science. "Our mission is to develop and demonstrate practical quantum-HPC hybrid workflows that can be explored by both the scientific community and industry. The connection of these two systems enables us to take critical steps toward realising this vision." The installation of IBM Quantum System Two at RIKEN is poised to expand previous efforts by RIKEN and IBM researchers as they seek to discover algorithms that offer quantum advantage: the point at which a quantum computer can solve a problem faster, cheaper, or more accurately than any known classical method. This includes work recently featured on the cover of Science Advances, based on sample-based quantum diagonalisation (SQD) techniques to accurately model the electronic structure of iron sulphides, a compound present widely in nature and organic systems. The ability to realistically model such a complex system is essential for many problems in chemistry, and was historically believed to require fault-tolerant quantum computers. SQD workflows are among the first demonstrations of how the near-term quantum computers of today can provide scientific value when integrated with powerful classical infrastructure. For more from IBM, click here.

Colt DCS achieves 90% renewable energy procurement

Colt Data Centre Services (Colt DCS), a data centre operator that designs, builds, and operates data centres for global hyperscalers and large enterprises, has published its third sustainability report, highlighting the company's performance over 2024. Last year, Colt DCS achieved 90% renewable energy procurement across its global estate, representing an 8% increase from the previous year. The data centre provider also reduced its absolute greenhouse gas emissions (Scopes 1, 2, and 3, market-based) by 32% compared to the 2019 base year, while continuing to expand its global footprint by adding new operational sites in Osaka Keihanna, Japan, and Mumbai, India. Today, the company operates 13 data centres across Europe and APAC, with an additional 19 facilities in development. 2024 marked the launch of a joint venture for Colt DCS with RMZ Infrastructure in India, increasing the data centre provider’s growth and capacity in high-demand markets. Individually, Scope 2 (market-based) emissions were reduced to zero through 100% renewable electricity procurement. While Scope 3 emissions, which represent 98% of the company’s total footprint in 2024, fell by 26% compared to the base year. In addition, Colt DCS under Colt Group maintained a Platinum score in its EcoVadis 2024 submission, marking the third consecutive year the data centre provider has ranked in the top 1% of organisations assessed for their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance. In 2024, the company was awarded the 'Best Colocation Provider Sustainability Innovation of the Year' at the Data Center Solutions (DCS) Awards. Further sustainability achievements in 2024 include:• 95% of waste diverted from landfill at London North (UK).• 91% of suppliers by emissions have science-based climate targets in place.• Striving to design all new facilities with renewable electricity supply, high energy efficient cooling systems, and - where local infrastructure allows - waste heat recovery.The data centre provider’s long-term climate goal is to achieve a 90% absolute reduction in Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions from 2019 levels by 2045. Key enablers include maintaining 100% renewable electricity, deploying scalable and sustainable data centres, and minimising embodied carbon in new developments. • The company launched the DCS Employee Value Proposition (EVP) and introduced the AI-powered “MyLearningHub” to support continuous learning and professional development.• 87% of employees recommend Colt DCS as a great place to work (up from 83% in 2023). • With increasing threats faced by critical infrastructure, the data centre provider has prioritised security, achieving ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type II certifications.• Colt DCS introduced a dedicated Risk Policy & Procedure, identifying and assessing sustainability risk using its Climate Change Risk Register, country-specific or function-specific risk registers, and the ESG risk register.• In 2024, the company also developed bottom-up risk registers across support functions and operations. “For Colt DCS, 2024 was a year of significant growth. When we started our hyperscale journey nine years ago, the cloud market was $111 billion. Today, it is over $760 billion and is projected to grow even further due to the rising demand in streaming, cloud, and artificial intelligence tools and services,” comments Niclas Sanfridsson, CEO of Colt DCS. “I’m especially proud that we were able to help our customers scale and accelerate during this time of transformation by staying true to our core values: trust, respect, unite, sustain, and trailblaze”. The data centre provider says it remains committed to its net zero by 2045 ambition, with a focus on innovation, collaboration, and responsible growth. The company will continue to update its Global Reference Design and sustainability roadmap in line with best practices and regulatory requirements. For more from Colt DCS, click here.

Equinix responds to new research by think-tank Ember

Think-tank Ember has published new research warning that poor electricity grid planning could cause a major shift in Europe’s data centre landscape, particularly as developers increasingly seek locations with faster and easier grid connections rather than traditional hubs like Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, and Paris. Data centres are a key part of critical infrastructure. In 2024, techUK published a report highlighting the essential role they play in enabling digital transformation across all sectors of the economy. As well as contributing £4.7 billion in gross added value (GVA) to the UK economy and 43,500 jobs, they are the backbone of our digital world. Data centres play a role in everything from delivering our favourite TV shows to ensuring we have access to banking, education, and healthcare. The opportunity AI has unlocked demands further data centre capacity which, in turn, requires energy. Equinix, an American multinational data centre and colocation company operating interconnection and data centre facilities worldwide, says it is responding to this need by investing in and expanding its campuses. The energy grid is evidently an important consideration in that process, with some campuses located in areas where both land and energy infrastructure are readily available. Other sites are built in areas where temporary energy solutions are needed while grid access is extended. In markets like the UK, the Government is making significant investment in the grid through programs like the RIIO-T3 Business Plan, which commits £35 billion to up-level the UK’s energy transmission system over the next 5 years, doubling the amount of transferable power by 2029 - creating great optimism. Equinix claims it has made significant investments in its energy programs. Examples include renewable energy adoption and the global Equinix Heat Export program, which intends to contribute heat and energy to communities that surround its campus locations. By adopting cleaner energy alternatives and innovative technologies, the company says it limits its reliance on the grid in some countries as well as reducing emissions globally. Its power purchase agreements (PPAs) are long-term wind and solar agreements where it partners directly with producers, helping to fund the development of projects like new wind and solar farms, increasing the amount of renewable energy available to the grid while supporting the long-term goal of reaching net zero by 2040. Globally, the Equinix Heat Export program takes waste heat from its data centres and, in partnership with energy utilities, distributes this heat to surrounding communities. In Helsinki, this program provides heat for local homes and, in Paris, heat is delivered to the Plaine Saulneir urban development zone which, alongside local houses, is home to the Olympic swimming pool. The energy grid is critical for supporting data centre infrastructure, and it’s certainly exciting to see innovation coming from both energy utilities and data centre operators. A collaboration between the two is crucial for unlocking opportunities for businesses, enriching the services they can offer to consumers, and achieving climate goals. For more from Equinix, click here.