Heating 250,000 Residents with Waste Heat... Experiment in Finland's Second City [AIDC Era Coexistence] ④

Ⅱ. Finland's Eco-Friendly Data Centers Become Urban Partners

Microsoft Builds Data Centers in Espoo and Kirkkonummi

Waste Heat to Supply 40% of Local Energy Needs by 2027

Contributing to Greenhouse Gas Reduction and Lower Resident Fue

Editor's NoteThe government has announced a plan to build a total of 18.4GW of data centers by 2035 as part of three major megaprojects to secure the nation's future growth engine in the era of artificial intelligence (AI). While data centers were once simply facilities supporting IT services, web applications, and data storage and sharing, they are now evolving into industrial platforms that produce and supply AI computing resources. However, despite the shared understanding that these data centers are critical infrastructure shaping national industrial competitiveness, there remain many challenges to the expansion of AI data centers (AIDC). The Asia Business Daily directly investigated overseas cases where countries such as Finland, Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands have cleverly resolved issues surrounding AIDCs—including power, permits, water supply, and local resident conflicts—and seeks solutions for Korea to help AIDCs become assets that coexist harmoniously with local communities.

Located just a 10-minute drive from the Finnish capital Helsinki, Espoo is the nation’s second-largest city and a hub for innovative companies. Major Finnish enterprises such as Nokia, Neste, and Valmet are based here, earning Espoo the nickname the "Silicon Valley of Finland." Companies headquartered in Espoo account for 41% of the total revenue of Finnish firms listed on the Helsinki Stock Exchange.

Microsoft (MS) is working in Espoo and nearby Kirkkonummi in collaboration with the local energy company Fortum on a project to utilize waste heat from the data center for district heating.

On July 6 (local time), a visit was made to the construction site of the Microsoft data center in the Kolabacken area of Kirkkonummi. Multiple excavators and workers were busily moving about, focusing on frame construction. The first building intended for use as a data center had been completed, and the second building had been under construction since March. A plot for the third building was also visibly prepared.

Microsoft's data center construction site in the Kirkonummi area of Finland. Photo by Heejong Kang

Just a few dozen meters from the data center construction site, Fortum’s heat pumps and thermal storage tanks had already been installed.

"Waste heat from the data center is transferred to the heat pump via that pipeline," explained Teemu Nieminen, Director of Heating and Cooling at Fortum, while pointing to the underground pipeline under construction.

Between the data center and Fortum’s heat pump facility, two pipes with a diameter of 800 mm are connected side by side. One transfers the heated cooling water from the data center to the heat pump, while the other returns the cooled water—after heat exchange within the heat pump—back to the data center. Up to 2,000 liters of water per second can flow through these pipelines.

A large thermal storage tank installed by Finnish energy company Fortum near the MS Kirkonummi data center. The thermal storage tank has a capacity of 800 megawatt-hours (MWh) and can store 20,000 liters of water. Photo by Heejong Kang

Fortum installed 20 air source heat pumps and 36 water source heat pumps right next to the data center. With a total capacity of 90 megawatts (MW), these facilities use water heated to 30 degrees Celsius after its use as cooling water in the data center and raise its temperature to 86 degrees for district heating. In the middle of winter, an electric boiler can be used additionally to increase the temperature to 115 degrees. The electricity used for the boiler is planned to be supplied from renewable sources.

Next to the heat pumps stands a massive thermal storage tank, 43 meters high and 26 meters in diameter. Water heated by the heat pumps is stored here. Director Nieminen explained, "The storage tank has a capacity of 800 megawatt-hours (MWh) and can store 20,000 liters of water," noting that "this is enough to provide district heating for the entire city of Espoo for about one hour during the harshest winter cold."

Fortum also built a heat pump at the Microsoft data center construction site in Hepokorpi, Espoo. The setup is the same, except there is no thermal storage tank.

When Microsoft’s data centers in Espoo and Kirkkonummi are completed in 2027, it is expected that waste heat from the data centers will be able to supply 40% of the heat needed for the area’s 250,000 district heating subscribers. Fortum described this as "the world’s largest waste heat recycling project from a data center." Director Nieminen further explained, "We are already prepared to receive waste heat whenever the data center is in operation."

The decision by Microsoft and Fortum to use waste heat from the data center for heating is directly in line with carbon neutrality plans for both Finland and Espoo. Finland has set a goal to achieve national carbon neutrality by 2035, leading the way in greenhouse gas reduction. Espoo announced its goal to reach carbon neutrality even earlier, by 2030.

The most important step in achieving this goal is the decarbonization of heating. According to the city of Espoo, as of 2024, heating accounts for 41% of the city’s total greenhouse gas emissions—the highest proportion among all sectors.

Teemu Nieminen, Director of Heating and Cooling at Fortum, is explaining the heat pump facility installed near the Microsoft Kirkkonummi data center. Photo by Hee-jong Kang

To achieve carbon neutrality in heating, Espoo has been implementing the "Espoo Clean Heat Program" with Fortum since 2017. The essence of the program is to convert the existing fossil fuel-based heating system into an eco-friendly, electricity-based district heating system. From April 2024, Espoo and Fortum completely ceased using coal for district heating production. Instead, they began utilizing waste heat from data centers and wastewater treatment plants, electric boilers, heat pumps, and biomass as energy sources for district heating.

Utilizing waste heat boosts positive public sentiment ... Minimizes resident conflict

Microsoft’s data center project is a core part of the Espoo Clean Heat Program. Microsoft and Fortum announced the waste heat utilization project for the data center in 2022. So far, Fortum has invested about 225 million euros (approximately KRW 368.9 billion) in constructing heat pump and pipeline infrastructure. Funding was provided by the European Union’s NextGenerationEU program and Finland’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment.

Microsoft's Kirkkonummi data center construction site and the Fortum heat pump facility landscape. Fortum

Through this project, Fortum expects to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 400,000 tons annually. Using waste heat from data centers for district heating also offers the advantage of less dependence on volatile fuel prices such as natural gas.

Thanks to reductions in greenhouse gases and fuel costs, there has been little opposition from residents to the construction of the data center. Director Nieminen explained, "There was no opposition or conflict from residents," adding, "The positive image of waste heat utilization seems to have had an effect."

Miska Hakala, director of Enter Espoo Oy, said, "Local residents are looking forward to the construction of the data center, as it contributes to Espoo’s 2030 carbon neutrality goal and ultimately improves the city’s image."

Miska Hakala, director of Enter Espoo Oy in Finland, explains the Espoo area in an interview with The Asia Business Daily. Enter Espoo is a company established to attract investment to the Espoo region. Photo by Heejong Kang

This feature was supported by the Press Promotion Fund, financed by government advertising fees.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.