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The Q 2020 Report is available to download HERE
Host in Ireland is delighted to announce that the latest Irish Data Center Report is now available.
The Biannual Report has been published and you can Download it direct to your inbox HERE
By downloading this, you will get access to our Q1 2020 report. This report will show you the most up to date and accurate information on the Irish data hosting market. Our report includes the latest Dashboard with the Dublin Metro Market Map and figures.
Q1 220 Irish Market Report Foreword by Garry Connolly, Founder & President Host In Ireland.
More than ever before, data centres are part of the critical global infrastructure. They are a key piece of the jigsaw allowing us to not only live our lives amidst the COVID-19 lockdown, but providing the backend infrastructure for the most essential services we rely on.
We’ve come to depend on data centres to deliver the data we need in the same way we depend on the electric company to ensure the lights go on when we flip the switch. With the essential role of data centres highlighted in our day to day lives, we have decided to add some key metrics to our quarterly reports.
We have begun tracking data centre capacity growth alongside the carbon intensity of electricity and CO2 attributable to data centres. Using data from SEAI, IWEA, EPA and EirGrid, we have found that whilst the trend for data centre growth is upwards, their proportion of Ireland’s total emissions will level-off at approximately 2.2% through 2025. The increase is expected to slow further as the transition to renewable electricity generation accelerates in order to meet the targets in the government’s Climate Action Plan.
While these numbers are encouraging, ensuring data centre efficiency will still be critical as the greenest electricity is still electricity not consumed. As noted by the IEA*, advances in the efficiency of data centre infrastructure, as well as a shift to virtualised servers and cloud computing, will contribute to this goal by delivering higher work output with fewer servers.
There are a few other key factors contributing to this trend:
First, electricity is expected to continue the transition to renewable generation. Ireland has the potential to generate far more wind power than needed and has the capacity to power 5% of Europe’s electricity requirements based on its wind generation alone. This creates a virtually untapped resource of green energy within its borders and along its coastline. Because of this, Ireland is also on track to meet the decarbonisation of electricity target of 40% set out by the government by the end of 2020. The country will also require at least 3,500 MW of offshore wind generation capacity by 2030** in order to meet the 70% renewable electricity ambition Ireland has set out to achieve.
Second, any future growth of data centres will drive green energy development in order to meet power availability demands. Power availability defines the size of any data centre operation. Without a guarantee of power availability, the data centre business model would not work.
Seventy-seven percent of the data centre market in Ireland relates to a category called Hyperscalers - Amazon, Google, Microsoft and Facebook. Collectively, these companies are the largest purchasers of renewable energy on the planet, and in the case of Microsoft, have pledged to be carbon neutral by 2025 and carbon negative by 2030. These companies are also innovating in how they can maximise power availability. Google, for example, recently announced a carbon-intelligent computing platform that shifts the timing of compute tasks to when low-carbon power sources, like wind and solar, are most plentiful˖.
Despite the global pandemic, we do not expect to see a slowdown in the data centre sector. Given the long-term nature of data centre construction projects, we anticipate a short term shift of 10-15% - approximately €200 million - from 2020 to the next year or two with an additional €6.7 billion in investments by 2025.
While traditional factories have remained closed, data centres continue to operate and play a significant role in keeping the economy moving. Here in Ireland, they are a part of the largest export industry, ICT, responsible for €86 billion in exported services per year˖˖.
Given their role on the digital frontline, it comes as no surprise to see a positive outlook for the data centre industry.
We thank our team members and partners for all they are doing to give back to their communities and support the most vulnerable.
When we get through these current challenges, we’ll not only be
stronger, but there is one beautiful world waiting for us all.
Garry Connolly, Founder & President Host In Ireland.