Wärtsilä has released a new study highlighting how selecting appropriate power technologies for off-grid data centres could generate substantial cost savings, reduce resource consumption and support the integration of renewable energy. The study estimates that technology choices for powering 55 GW of off-grid data centre capacity could create a cost difference of €196 billion over 20 years.
Titled Unlock Power. Unleash Growth: How Data Centres Can Create Tomorrow’s Power System Flexibility, the study compares flexible engine-based power solutions with combined-cycle gas turbines (CCGTs) in a scenario where global off-grid data centre capacity reaches 55 GW by 2035.
According to the analysis, engine-based solutions could use 99.97% less water than CCGTs, primarily due to lower cooling requirements. They could also occupy land equivalent to approximately 2,200 fewer football pitches while supplying the same data centre demand, owing to lower requirements for generation equipment and battery energy storage.
The growing demand for data centres, driven partly by artificial intelligence and digital infrastructure expansion, is increasing pressure on electricity systems. Lengthy grid connection queues are encouraging developers to consider on-site power generation to bring facilities online more quickly.
Wärtsilä’s study highlights that flexible engine-based power systems could continue providing value after data centres connect to the grid. These assets could supply backup power and help balance fluctuations in wind and solar generation, supporting greater renewable energy integration.
The analysis further suggests that deploying flexible generation capacity and energy storage alongside renewable energy could help avoid up to €200 billion in additional balancing-capacity costs over 20 years, subject to appropriate grid and market arrangements.
The study also identifies opportunities to recover waste heat from data centres and supply it to homes and businesses through district heating networks. Drawing on an estimate from the International Energy Agency, Wärtsilä notes that recovered data centre heat could meet around 10% of Europe’s space-heating demand, creating an estimated €180 billion in net economic value over 20 years.
Anders Lindberg, President of Wärtsilä Energy and Executive Vice President of Wärtsilä, said that the power infrastructure developed for data centres could deliver benefits beyond meeting their electricity requirements. He emphasised that appropriate technology choices could reduce costs and resource use while helping balance power systems and enable greater deployment of wind and solar energy.
Wärtsilä has called for data centre developers, regulators and power system operators to work together to recognise and unlock these wider benefits.
The company clarified that the 55 GW scenario represents the upper end of the deployment outlook assessed, rather than a prediction, and that actual data centre power infrastructure is expected to use a mix of technologies.
