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VERNE UNVEILS PLANS FOR NEXT- GENERATION SUSTAINABLE DATA CENTER CAMPUS IN FINLAND
Verne has acquired a strategic site in Mäntsälä , Finland , unveiling plans to build its fifth Nordic data center , reinforcing the company ’ s position as a leader in sustainable and scalable data center solutions .
With an initial capacity of 70 MW , the Mäntsälä 10-hectare campus , a 40-minute drive from Helsinki-Vantaa International Airport , will support services to data intensive enterprises and AI innovators running High Performance Compute ( HPC ), machine learning , and other high intensity workloads , while operating exclusively on renewable energy .
The new campus will be powered by 100 % renewable energy sources , while waste heat generated by the data center will be harnessed to power local community heating projects .
Dominic Ward , CEO , Verne , said : “ This new site is part of our strategy of continuous growth across the Nordic region and marks our first new location following Ardian ’ s acquisition of Verne .”
“ Finland , with its abundant clean energy , established data center industry and highly skilled workforce , offers the perfect environment for our latest development .”
Construction of Mäntsälä data center will commence in mid- 2025 and is expected to take two years to complete .
The expansion represents a strategic move in Verne ’ s longterm plan to build out its sustainably powered data center platform , which was acquired by private investment house Ardian in early 2024 .
Ardian – a long-term infrastructure investor focused on a focus on energy transition and digital infrastructure projects – is working with Verne to drive sustainable growth across the Nordic countries , starting with this expansion plan in Finland .
Lumen Technologies has an agreement with Corning Incorporated for a substantial supply of next-generation optical cable .
This fibre-dense cable will more than double Lumen ’ s US intercity fibre miles , offering significant capacity to major cloud data centres racing to stay ahead of AI workloads and high bandwidth applications fuelled by massive amounts of data .
Lumen has the largest ultra-low-loss intercity fibre network in North America . Its US intercity network includes diverse routes to more than 50 major cities across the country .
The rapid advancement of Gen-AI requires at least 10 times more fibre connections within data centres , as well as a robust fibre network to transmit information between these data hubs .
With this agreement , Lumen reserves 10 % of Corning ’ s global fibre capacity for each of the next two years .
The agreement , Lumen ’ s largest cable purchase , will equip Lumen to meet the network infrastructure needs of major data centre operators for years to come .
Kate Johnson , President and CEO , Lumen Technologies , said : “ This partnership gives Lumen status as a preferred partner and secures a significant supply of next-generation fibre today and in the future .”
CORNING AND LUMEN REACH SUPPLY AGREEMENT ON NEXT-GEN FIBRE-OPTIC CABLE
Wendell P . Weeks , Chairman and CEO , Corning Incorporated , said : “ This marks the first outside-plant deployment of Corning ’ s new Gen-AI fibre and cable system , which will enable Lumen to fit anywhere from two-to-four times the amount of fibre into their existing conduit .” �
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