Data centres |


EPRI data centre flexibility initiative expands into Europe


EPRI has announced the international expansion of its DCFlex initiative, starting with participants in Europe.


Introduced last year in the USA, DCFlex explores how data centres can support the electric grid, enable better asset utilisation, and improve interconnection and efficiency. The collaborative effort — with Google, Meta, NVIDIA, and various utilities as founding members — now includes France-based RTE and Schneider Electric, Amsterdam-based ING, and PPC Group, based in Athens, Greece.


Data centres are one of the fastest-growing industries worldwide. Between 2017 and 2021, electricity used by Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google — the main providers of commercially available cloud computing and digital services — more than doubled. Power consumption by data centres in Europe is projected to triple by 2030, according to a 2024 report from McKinsey & Company. The research found that electricity demand from data centres in the European Union, Norway, Switzerland, and UK will rise from 10 GW today to 35 GW by 2030. In Ireland, for example, data centres account for more than 20% of all electricity consumption.


DCFlex will establish flexibility hubs, demonstrating innovative data centre and power supplier strategies that enable operational and deployment flexibility, streamline grid integration, and transition backup power solutions to grid assets. Demonstration deployments will begin in the first half of 2025, and testing is planned to continue to the end of 2027.


“Europe is experiencing significant growth in electricity demand, driven by data centres, AI, increased electrification, and other factors,” said EPRI President and CEO Arshad Mansoor. “Flexible data centre design and operation is a key strategy for accelerating AI development and realising its benefits, while minimising costs and enhancing system reliability.”


“As the demand for grid connections from hyperscalers grows exponentially in France, RTE must match the electric consumption of their algorithms with the power system constraints to accelerate the connection process,” said Xavier Piechaczyk, president of the managing board, RTE. Full-scale experimentation, as envisaged for DCFlex projects, will “demonstrate the technical feasibility of data centre flexibility solutions.”


“At Google, we see this moment as a


generational opportunity for the public and private sector to work together to meet energy demand responsibly and unlock significant benefits for people, the economy and the planet,” said Caroline Golin, global head of Energy Market Development and Innovation at Google. “Through the leadership, expertise, and convening power of EPRI, DCFlex will be an important collaboration vehicle to align our common goals, as we work together to build a stronger electrical grid for all.”


“The energy and technology industries are becoming ever more interlinked and interdependent in the new era of decentralised- flexible energy generation, exponential data growth, and AI,” said PPC Group Chairman and CEO Georgios Stassis.


“We are proud to be the first global financial institution to join DCFlex and to play a leading role in shaping the solutions necessary to ensure electric grid stability and sustainable growth of the data centre sector,” said Mark Pieter de Boer, global head of sector coverage and chief commercial officer, ING.


London Array PPA for Telehouse


Data centre service provider Telehouse International Corporation has signed a 10-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with RWE, under which RWE will supply a substantial amount of the renewable energy to be used at Telehouse’s London Docklands campus. The power will come from the London Array offshore wind farm, located in the outer Thames Estuary.


Mushtaq Choudhary, Head of Procurement at Telehouse Europe, said: “Telehouse is committed to enhancing energy efficiency, promoting green procurement, and reducing our carbon footprint and that of our customers. Thanks to this PPA with RWE, the electricity purchased for our London Docklands campus will continue to be derived from renewable energy sources,


demonstrating our efforts to drive efficiency at our campus and deliver real benefits for our customers.”


London Array is operated by RWE and owned by a consortium of four partners (RWE, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Greencoat UK Wind PLC, Masdar Energy UK Limited). It has 175 wind turbines and an installed capacity of 630 MW. From the time of its opening in 2013 until September 2018, it was the largest offshore wind farm in the world.


Telehouse says it brings together more than 3000 business partners including carriers, mobile and content providers, enterprises and financial services companies.


Established in 1989, it provides “reliable, secure and flexible colocation.”


London Array. Photo: RWE


Cypress Creek and Meta sign 505 MW PV agreement


Visualisation of a Meta datacentre (source: Meta)


Cypress Creek Renewables and Meta have signed a landmark Environmental Attribute Purchase Agreement (EAPA) that will enable Cypress Creek to construct a 505 MWdc solar facility in Texas. The agreement supports Meta’s goal of matching its operations with 100% renewable energy. The new 505 MWdc (396 MWac) PV facility,


28 | May 2025| www.modernpowersystems.com


Hanson Solar, in Coleman County, Texas, will be owned and operated by Cypress Creek. Once operational, the project will deliver electricity to the ERCOT grid.


Construction of Hanson Solar is scheduled to begin later this year, with operation expected to start in 2027.


Telehouse describes its London Docklands facility as “Europe’s most connected data centre campus” and itself as “a driving force for sustainability in the data centre industry”, powering its data centres “with electricity from 100% renewable sources.”


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