“Power is the most critical component for data center projects,” says Veikko Martiskainen, International Business Development Director at Granlund. “Because it is so important, data center projects tend to start with power.”
The demand for data centers in Europe is expected to more than triple by 2030. The Nordics are popular destinations for data centers thanks to the cool climate, encouraging regulations, good workforce and especially the availability of cheap and reliable power.
In Finland and Sweden, data center operators can enjoy about 95% carbon-free electricity at costs much lower than the European average and which is distributed by some of the world’s most reliable transmission system operators. Yet not all plots of land in the Nordics are the same, so it is important to have a knowledgeable local partner.
Power security starts with a plan
“I have seen instances where a company has purchased land, believing it can obtain power from one source, only for the data center to learn later they have to use a different source much farther away,” says Martin Horvat, Senior Project Manager at Granlund Sweden. “It is important to contact us early in the process so we can help customers avoid problems like this.”
Setbacks are more likely as the length of cables grow connecting the TSO / DSO substation and the data center substation. With more distance covered, chances grow that studies, permits and agreements will take longer or run into problems.
When Granlund is involved early in the process, their experts can look for capacity in the area and help communicate with grid operators. Often substations need to be upgraded and grid power capacities increased. This takes time, so it is important to start thinking about securing power as soon as possible.
“Customers think ahead and make long-term plans, and we can verify the site scalability to meet their targets and avoid unpleasant surprises,” explains Martiskainen. “Maybe they only need 50 MW to begin, but want the possibility to scale up to 150 MW over time. We help them analyze long-term power availability and security.”
Proper design and management essential
After site selection and due diligence, Granlund experts can help with the next step of securing power by further design and permitting to make the connection agreement with the TSO / DSO. The Nordics already have an impressive transmission reliability rate – normally close to the sought-after “five nines” (99.999%) – and Granlund can help design suitable power backup plans.
“We can improve power reliability with data centers’ own redundancy, such as dual power supply, backup power and uninterruptible power (UPS), which we advocate and help our customers with,” Horvat points out. “As experts in the field, we want our customers to be free from interruptions and have a high level of reliability for their facilities.”
As a holistic end-to-end data center design partner, Granlund can help handle the complex steps of securing power for a data center, including power agreements, building permits and connection agreements. To improve time efficiency, the TSOs Finngrid in Finland and Svenska kraftnät in Sweden often carry out their grid improvements while data center construction is ongoing.
We can improve power reliability with data centers’ own redundancy, such as dual power supply, backup power and uninterruptible power (UPS), which we advocate and help our customers with.
Martin Horvat, Senior Project Manager, Granlund Sweden
“Power is the most critical component of data centers, so we work hard with customers to make sure power is secured and the operations are efficient,” Martiskainen says. “For example, how much backup power do they really need? We want to optimize the operations of the whole data center so customers don’t waste capacity, time and money.”
Competence and experience matters in complex projects
Granlund has some of the most experienced and knowledgeable experts in the industry, people with tens of data center projects in their work history. They have successfully assisted local tech companies, international data center corporations and the big hyperscalers set up their centers in the Nordics.
“We can help customers through the entire process, from when they first start looking for a site for their data center, through design and project management, all the way to commissioning,” Horvat concludes.
