Keppel Data Centres has entered into agreements with Toll Group and Royal Vopak to study the possibilities for developing a Floating Data Centre Park and liquefied natural gas power solutions in Singapore.

These solutions aim to improve the power efficiency of Keppel’s data centers, decarbonise operations and save space in the land scarce country.

Keppel Data Centres and Toll Group, an Australian transportation and logistics company with an extensive network of warehouses and distribution facilities in Singapore, will explore the development of a Floating Data Centre Park based at the Loyang Offshore Supply Base.

Keppel Data Centres’ CEO Mr Wong Wai Meng said: “We see great potential in FDCPs as a commercially viable and attractive innovation that conserves land, water and energy, compared to traditional land-based data centres.”

With the growing global demand for data centres, Keppel Data Centres’ FDCP concept is an environmentally-friendly and resource-efficient way to meet the expanding needs of the digital economy. This is particularly important when 7% of all electricity consumption in Singapore comes from data centers each year.

The floating data center will use the surrounding seawater to cool the park and avoid using industrial water from cooling towers, which often results in wasting water through evaporation.

Mr Sam Eid, Executive Vice President of Global Logistics at Toll Group, said: “This initiative will allow Toll Group to take a significant role to improve space productivity and sustainability in Singapore whilst driving our primary focus.”

The FDCP will feature a modular design that can be scaled up quickly to meet customer demand. Keppel Data Centres hopes this will reduce the cost, time and carbon footprint related to constructing data centers. The older modules will also be recycled for deployment in other locations to fulfil their sustainability goals.

Powering data centers with Liquid Natural Gas and hydrogen solutions

Keppel Data Centres will also work together with Royal Vopak, an independent tank storage company, to assess the commercial viability of establishing LNG and hydrogen infrastructures that can power and cool facilities. Keppel Data Centres envisions this solution to generate onsite power and eliminate reliance on the national grid for the first floating data center in Singapore.

The President at Vopak LNG Mr Kees van Seventer said: “With our presence of 37 years in Singapore, we are committed to grow our footprint with sustainable infrastructure solutions.”

Keppel Data Centres initially entered into a partnership in 2019 with the Faculty of Engineering at the National University of Singapore and Singapore LNG Corporation to develop new prototypes that cool data centers and reduce their carbon footprint by harnessing cold energy released from the LNG regasification process.

These additional partnerships with Toll Group and Royal Vopak come at an opportune time, as Singapore is aiming to improve its environmental impact by introducing Green Data Centre Standards, a carbon tax at a rate of $5 for every tonne of greenhouse gas emissions, and a committal to ensure at least 80% of its buildings will be green by 2030.

What is next for Keppel Data Centres?

How have data centers been impacted by the recent pandemic and where will the industry look next for investment? 

Join the Inside Asia – Technology & Market Next Moves digital event on 30 April with industry experts, including Keppel Data Centre’s Head of Global Strategy and Investments Ong Kok Chye, to find out what’s next for the technology industry, the digital economy and tech spending.