This new metric , developed in cooperation with FEEM , enables the company to measure and report on the full 24 / 7 carbon free energy usage of its Edge data centres .

With this innovative metric , nLighten is on the path to setting new standards in sustainability reporting for the data centre industry .

nLighten developed the study in collaboration with the Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei ( FEEM ), a leading international research centre for the study of energy and environmental issues , based in Milan , Italy .

The Integrated CFE Score , as the centrepiece of the study , highlights nLighten ' s commitment to advancing a

24 / 7 Carbon Free Energy concept by adopting a holistic perspective which includes sector coupling . 24 / 7 CFE means that every kWh of electricity consumed is sourced from carbon-free electricity , every hour of every day , everywhere . This goal is being promoted to achieve zero emissions .

Unlike conventional CFE indicators that focus solely on electricity consumption , nLighten ' s approach extends the analysis to include both carbon-free electricity and heat produced by nLighten data centres . It then integrates waste heat recovery into sustainability metrics which extend beyond the data centre perimeter to encompass coupled buildings or systems .

With this initiative , nLighten aims to provide a transparent measurement of environmental impact and contribution to decarbonisation efforts .

Key innovative metrics introduced in the study include :

• The Integrated Carbon-Free Energy score ( ICFEn ) which combines both carbon-free electricity and heat scores to measure the aggregate percentage of carbon-free energy . This can be performed for the data centre in isolation or for a system of multiple energy users , so that the community effect of sector-coupled data centres becomes apparent .

• The Integrated Avoided Emissions metric which quantifies emissions reductions achieved through sector coupling of the data centre and other utilities , such as heat reuse , renewables generation and grid stabilising .

“ At nLighten , we are committed to advancing the idea of integrated sustainability in the data centre industry ”, said Chad McCarthy , CTO , nLighten .

“ The integrated CFE score takes into account all the components of nLighten Sector Coupling : heat reuse , grid stabilisation , onsite generation and PPAs .

INTELLIGENT POWER AND COOLING

“ By integrating all these components into the CFE score , we create a metric to measure the improvement in efficiency and emissions that our data centres make within the community infrastructure ,” added McCarthy .

“ The energy transition requires increased transparency of energy procurement and a higher level of accountability for any environmental claim ,” said Professor Alessandro Lanza , Executive Director of FEEM . “ At FEEM , we have been working on sustainability for over three decades and we support the developments of accurate metrics of performance . Therefore , we are pleased to provide a new methodology for calculating the carbon footprint of energy consumption for data centres : as the energy demand from ICT is expected to grow significantly , it is important for the sector to adopt strict rules on carbon emissions .” �

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