Cleaner and cheaper energy positions Scotland as potential hotspot for multibillion-pound data centre opportunity .

This marks a significant milestone , allowing for the hosting of high-density workloads at DataVita ' s DV1 facility in Lanarkshire – a first for Scotland . As one of the UK ' s most energy-efficient data centres , the facility now boasts the capacity to accommodate up to 100kW per rack for air cooling and up to 400kW per rack for liquid cooling . This enhancement significantly exceeds the capabilities of standard racks , providing essential support for the

Danny Quinn , MD of DataVita requirements of HPC , and represents a major leap forward for the Scottish data centre market .

According to the US International Trade Administration , the UK ’ s AI market is currently valued at over £ 16.9 billion , and it is estimated to add £ 803.7 billion to the UK economy by 2035 . Alongside the accelerated adoption of Generative AI models such as ChatGPT over the last year , DataVita said it has witnessed a huge surge in the volume of enquiries for high-capacity hosting and is already in talks with a number of globally significant tech providers .

The higher proportion of renewable sources in Scotland ' s energy mix means there is a much lower carbon footprint associated with hosting data centres in the country compared to the rest of the UK and other nations . Relocating a 200- rack facility from London to Scotland would save over 6 million kgCO 2 e , equivalent to over 14 million miles driven by the average mid-sized car . Compared to Poland , it would reduce carbon emissions by 99 %.

Scotland generated more renewable power than it used for the first time in 2022 and , therefore , has plenty of capacity to host the data needs of AI . Organisations could also save up to 70 % on their data centre costs because of factors such as the country ’ s natural climate , which reduces the need for additional cooling .

Danny Quinn , MD of DataVita , said : “ AI is one of the fastest growing sectors of technology and could have huge benefits for businesses , as well as public services and the wellbeing of citizens who use them . However , to support its widespread use we need to have the infrastructure in place to underpin the advanced computing power and data it requires .

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“ While other European nations are struggling with power and capacity , Scotland has a surplus of renewable energy that could be used to power this new and exciting technology that everyone is talking about . We see a big opportunity tied to the growing global demand , which is why we have redesigned elements of our DV1 facility to match the needs of AI and HPC providers .

“ The location is ideal for companies aiming to reduce the carbon footprint of their IT provision while maintaining unmatched resilience , security , power and connectivity . By using Scotland ’ s natural resources and existing renewable energy infrastructure , we are proving that increasing AI data workloads does not need to come at the expense of the environment .” �

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