Warming Up to Efficiency: A Cross-Industry Panel on Data Centre Heat Export

Join us for a thought-provoking event that delves into the intersection of digital infrastructure and cleaner, greener heat to warm communities. 

District heating networks are widely seen as a low-carbon heating solution for cities and semi-urban environments. Data centres, which play a vital role in the development of digitally enabled cities and are frequently clustered in such regions, naturally generate heat as part of their operations. Integrating data centre heat into heat networks therefore presents a promising avenue for sustainable, low-carbon heating solutions. However, this transition is not without its challenges. 

As the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) plans to introduce a regulatory framework for heat network zoning in England, our hybrid panel discussion aims to facilitate cross-industry conversations on how to collaboratively address the challenges associated with heat export, contributing to a more affordable and environmentally friendly future. 

Topics discussed will include:  

• Assessing the potential of data centres in aiding the UK's heat decarbonisation goals. 

• Examining how heat export can enhance energy security.  

• Exploring the role of heat export in shielding consumers from energy price shocks. 

• Investigating methods for data centres to attain higher temperatures using liquid cooling technology. 

Please note that the event will start at 4 PM in-person and 4:30 PM online.

Join us to discover valuable perspectives from trailblazers in this field such as the event’s sponsor, Equinix.  

Our customers’ IT infrastructure in our data centres generates heat. We aim to capture and export this heat to benefit local communities wherever possible, reducing energy use and improving power useage effectiveness (PUE). Our heat export program is industry leading. We have been exporting heat for over a decade and we are building in-house expertise to keep ahead of regulations. Today, we are ready to scale our impact.

In 2023, we expanded the number of our sites contracted to export heat from 1 to 4 sites across our global operations and it is now a requirement for our new build sites to be heat export enabled.

We partner with utilities to export heat and ensure there is a meaningful impact in the communities where we operate. The heat we provide replaces more expensive and carbon intensive energy sources like gas and coal that would otherwise be used to heat homes.

The panel will be followed by a networking mixer, and refreshments will be provided.  

Keynote speakers