Interoute invests in renewable energy for its Swiss Data Centre
Custom free cooling installation in Geneva Data Center
Geneva on 9 January 2013
Interoute, owner operator of the largest cloud services platform in Europe, today announced the adoption of a free cooling system in its Geneva Data Centre which will be powered by Swiss hydropower. From 2013, Interoute’s Swiss DC will consume 100% renewable energy and carbon emissions will go down from 6000 to 150 tonnes. Clients such as UEFA (Union of European Football Associations), UCI (International Cyclist Union), IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) or TCS (Touring Club Suisse) are hosted in the Geneva Data Centre; therefore they will be able to argue that their infrastructure or services are operated in compliance with strict and environment-friendly constraints.
The new cooling system is quieter and, depending on the outdoor temperature, Interoute’s Geneva Data Centre aims to reduce its electricity consumption by up to 30% in 2013. In addition, Interoute’s Geneva Data Centre will use 100% hydraulic power for the next three years. The goal is to reach level 2 of the European Union Data Centre Code of Conduct. Interoute is committed to the responsible use of electricity and energy, and also uses green power for its Amsterdam and Berlin Data Centres
Free cooling uses outside air to cool the data centre equipment when the weather permits. For example, when the outside temperature is below 14°C, the system chills water using some outside air to cool the water in the system. When it passes below the 8°C, the system uses only outside air and turns off the cooling units, so it operates on 100% free cooling, and consumes much less energy. Below 4°C, the system switches to super free cooling which reduces the water temperature and further reduces the energy consumption of air conditioners.
This project is part of the eco-friendly policy of Interoute Switzerland which has signed the éco21 charter, a part of the “Ambition Négawatt” program, and developed by the Services Industriels de Genève (SIG). This program motivates large energy consumers to develop and implement solutions to improve energy efficiency and rewards each kWh saved and tonne of CO2 avoided.
Through this approach, Interoute Switzerland proves its commitment to transparency on the origin of its power (volume of electricity, sources of energy, time and place of production, as well as data on the production plant), responding to the principle of the “Guarantee of Origins” set up by Swiss Grid.
The challenge to set up the free cooling in the Data Centre without interruption of service has taken a year to complete.
Adnane Boulerbah, Power Manager and Facility Design for Interoute, said: “We are constantly evaluating more efficient cooling systems, green technologies and carbon emission reduction methods. Our choice was naturally focused on the implementation of a free cooling system, with which we will aim to reduce carbon emissions from the Geneva Data Centre by 4000%.”
About Interoute
Interoute is the owner of the largest cloud services platform in Europe, with 60,000 km of fibre and 9 data centres, more than 32 centres colocation connected to another 140 partner Data Centres across the continent. Its unified ICT offerings target multinationals as well as all the major telecommunications companies in Europe and the major operators of North America, East and South Asia, the states and universities. These organisations find Interoute the ideal partner for connectivity, hosting content, Internet access or creating new services. It strategy for unified ICT is attractive to companies seeking a secure platform, scalable and without constraints, on which they can build their voice, video, and computer data, and Internet service providers seeking a high capacity international for their infrastructure and data transfer. Present in all of Europe, North America and Dubai, Interoute also owns and operates dense city networks throughout the major European business centres. For more information, visit www.interoute.ch. Follow us on twitter: http://twitter.com/InterouteCH Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Interoute-Managed-Services-Switzerland/216972971766608
