On Wednesday, Equinix, the world’s largest colocation data center provider, announced the imminent opening of its latest International Business Exchange (IBX) data center, the 14th such facility in the third largest colocation metro in North America, California’s Silicon Valley. The $142 million data center, SV11, is set to open on June 30, and is a showpiece of energy efficiency breakthroughs for the company.
Equinix says SV11 is targeting LEED Silver certification, with an ultra-low design average annual Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of 1.17. Equinix’s Great Oaks campus in San Jose, which hosts the data center, is planned for 20 megawatt (MW) capacity of Bloom Energy renewable fuel cells. This marks the first time that Equinix will use Bloom Energy’s renewable energy system as primary generation, with utility electric grid and generators as backup sources. According to an Equinix statement, the decision was made in continuation of its exploration of alternative fuel sources for energy reliability and sustainability. Equinix has a long-term goal of using 100 percent clean and renewable energy for its global platform.
“Digital transformation continues to accelerate at an unprecedented rate,” said Jon Lin, Equinix Americas President, in a statement on SV11. “SV11 is another example of our commitment to provider our customers with the right places, partners and possibilities for their digital transformations now and in the future.”
A Multiplier
The grand opening of SV11 marks more than $1.25 billion in investment from Equinix into the San Jose economy to date, and the company holds additional land in the area for future expansion as demand arises. Equinix’s John Lin said in a separate statement that the company’s investment in data centers is “a strong economic multiplier” for public infrastructure upgrades such as power, road, water and fiber, and the campus itself is a major West Coast internet traffic hub and driver of regional innovation and the digital economy.
“The multi-tenant data center industry in Northern California has continued to see steady demand over the past several years, and this growth will be ongoing for the near future. IT firms of all kinds – from cloud and software to gaming – are driving the demand for connectivity and the ability to be in close proximity to clouds, partners and users,” said Stefanie Williams, Senior Research Analyst at S&P Global Market Intelligence tech research subsidiary 451, speaking for Equinix. “Equinix is expanding its presence in Silicon Valley to meet these potential customer requirements for digital infrastructure, while focusing on designing and operating a facility in line with its internal sustainability objectives.”
Microsoft all-in, too
Earlier this week, Swedish fuel producer Preem announced that its low-carbon fuel product, Preem Evolution Diesel Plus–billed as the world’s first Nordic Eco-labelled diesel fuel–has been selected by Microsoft as a backup generator fuel at its 100 percent renewable energy-powered data center cluster under development in Sweden. According to Preem, Evolution Diesel Plus contains at least 50 percent renewable raw material, which entails an almost equivalent reduction in net CO2 emissions compared to standard diesel, and the company has committed to sustainably sourced feedstocks for its renewable fuels.
