Inside Denmark: Google’s European hyperscale data centres and infrastructure ecosystem
Inside Denmark: Google’s European hyperscale data centres and infrastructure ecosystem
Google has invested heavily and widely in data centres and related infrastructures in Europe. Currently, it operates hyperscale data centres across Europe: Fredericia in Denmark, St. Ghislain-Mons in Belgium, Hamina-Kotka in Finland, Dublin in Ireland, and Eemshaven-Groningen and Agriport in the Netherlands.
Denmark: A vital connection in Europe
Growth and jobs. Denmark is a gateway to Europe for global network infrastructure, as shown by the Google case study. The company is now facilitating even greater EU-wide connectivity via Denmark. It has done so as part of a wider infrastructure programme which – specifically over the period 2018 to 2020:
Delivered total cumulative investments of EUR 600 million in the Fredericia data centre and related network infrastructures.
This has supported EUR 750 million in GDP in Denmark.
Furthermore, 2,600 jobs per year on average during the same period have been supported.
Network infrastructure. This digital infrastructure effort includes an important, often underappreciated, part of Google’s European economic contribution, namely the investment in network connectivity such as fibre links spanning the European continent and linking Europe to the global internet.
In addition to the digital transformation supported by Google’s investments, Google’s Fredericia hyperscale data centre is on the forefront of the green transition in digital energy. From day one of operation, its energy demand will be met almost entirely by carbon-free energy, making it one of Google's cleanest data centres anywhere in the world.
Energy efficiency. Every time we as users choose to rely on services provided online, we channel indirect demand for energy. As traditional non-digital activities continue to shift to new digital applications, the way energy is being consumed is changing. The data centre industry has significantly raised its energy efficiency. In fact, recent global research established that while demand for data driven services has increased exponentially (by 550 percent) over the past 10 years, data centre energy usage has remained relatively stable (increasing by only 6 percent). At the same time, there is potential to improve efficiency even further. We estimate that, if across Europe all business email servers were hosted by data centres as efficient as Google’s, this would save the equivalent of the annual household consumption of electricity in Ireland.
Renewable energy. Driving the green revolution forward, Google is also the largest corporate buyer of renewable energy sources. It does so by committing to and signing Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), key enablers for the renewable energy project developer/investor. As of September 2020, Google had signed 24 PPAs for energy production from European wind and solar farms to match the energy consumption of its data centres. In addition, in September 2020 Google stated that it will be carbon-free by 2030.
The study was commissioned by Google.
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