Waterless cooling, ultra-efficient operations and low-cost renewable energy will enable the new facilities to sustainably meet the demands of generative AI and advanced computing
NEW YORK, USA / MÉRIDA, SPAIN (January 14, 2024) – MERLIN Properties and Edged Energy announced a pioneering public-private project with the regional government of Extremadura, Spain, to develop two state-of-the-art, carbon neutral data center campuses focused on generative artificial intelligence and advanced computing. The facilities will be located in Navalmoral de la Mata in Cáceres Province and Valdecaballeros in Badajoz Province, and will each offer up to 1GW of IT capacity with an industry-leading average PUE of 1.15.
The project will capitalize on Spain’s abundant renewable energy, which is expected to be the lowest long-term energy cost in Europe, and world-leading high-speed fiber connectivity. Together, these factors are transforming the Iberian Peninsula into a major internet hub. The project is overseen by Edged Energy, a global developer of sustainable data centers, and MERLIN Properties, the Iberian Peninsula’s leading developer and operator of green real estate assets. Together, they are building the largest network of data centers in the region and the first to feature waterless designs system-wide. The two companies joined forces in 2020 to build and operate data centers, and have since opened facilities in Barcelona, Madrid, and the first phase of the 130 MW Bilbao campus. A fourth MERLIN Edged campus, in Lisbon, is currently under construction.
“Our mission is to create data centers for positive impact, and we are proud to contribute to the Iberian Peninsula’s growing digital economy,” says Jakob Carnemark, CEO of Edged Energy. “The region offers unprecedented fiber connectivity with massive submarine connections worldwide and boasts reliable, abundant, and low-cost renewable energy. Our commitment to sustainability and energy efficiency aligns perfectly with Extremadura’s commitment to use innovation and technology to combat climate change and help safeguard the area’s natural resources.”
The new facilities will be ultra-efficient and at the forefront of innovation in sustainability. They are expected to consume no water for cooling, operate 100% on electricity from green energy sources, and be highly efficient in converting electrical power into computing capacity. The facilities will feature the breakthrough ThermalWorks waterless cooling system, created to support both traditional air cooling and ultra high-density liquid cooled AI workloads, with rack densities of up to 200kW per rack.
The Iberian Peninsula is quickly becoming one of the most strategically connected places in the world – a high-tech hub directly served by three of the world’s top four fastest submarine cables, which give Spain excellent access to networks reaching Europe, North America, South America, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.
The Extremadura region has vast sustainable energy generation capacity derived largely from renewable sources, and currently produces approximately six times the electricity it consumes. This will allow for the development of up to 1GW of IT capacity at each of the two chosen locations. The projects will create high-skilled jobs in the data centers’ construction and subsequent operation, with significant indirect economic benefits for the region’s economic, social, and demographic development.
Leveraging proprietary clean technologies and a strong working partnership, MERLIN and Edged are building infrastructure for the future. This and other projects by MERLIN and Edged position Spain as a leader in the industry and showcase how other hot, dry climates with limited water resources can use cutting-edge technology to support an expanding digital economy and be a catalyst for change.
About Edged Energy
Edged is a globally vertically integrated on-demand data center platform. Its European operations are carbon and water neutral. Edged is an Endeavour company. For more information, visit www.edged.es.
About MERLIN Properties
MERLIN Properties SOCIMI, S.A. (MC:MRL) is the largest publicly listed real estate company on the Spanish and Portuguese stock exchanges. It specializes in the promotion, acquisition, and management of commercial real estate assets in the Iberian Peninsula, primarily investing in office buildings, shopping centers, logistics platforms, and data centers. MERLIN Properties is part of key indices such as IBEX 35, Euro STOXX 600, FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Global Real Estate Index, GPR Global Index, GPR-250 Index, MSCI Small Caps, and DJSI. Visit www.merlinproperties.com for more information about the company.
For more information, please contact:
Jennifer Hayes, Jennifer.Hayes@endeavourii.com
