A TOTAL OF 184MW IRISH FACILITIES

Pioneer Point Partners (Pioneer) and Davidson Kempner (DK) have entered into partnership with Irish data center company Echelon, an investment program that is worth €1 billion.

The partnership is expected to support Echelon’s data center sites in Ireland. The two hyperscale facilities are set to have a total IT load capacity of 184MW with further pipeline across Europe.

The investment from Pioneer and DK is focused on providing the energy infrastructure required for the data centers, this includes grid infrastructure, renewable energy projects and backup power generation.

Pioneer, an investment company which specializes in the energy transition and environment sectors, will also be involved in the construction of the facilities. On the other hand, DK will focus on covering the costs of the planned infrastructure and renewable energy projects.

“The data center sector is going through significant change driven by the exponential growth in data usage and storage, leading to the need for projects on a much larger scale than previously,” said Pioneer in its statement.

“This, combined with end tenant’s desire for renewable energy to meet their stated carbon neutral goals, means the energy solutions for data centers are becoming increasingly capital intensive and require specialist investment expertise. This sustainable investment theme is a key focus area for Pioneer, with Ireland being a priority due to its strategic importance as one of the largest technology hubs in Europe.”

The first Echelon data center in Ireland is codenamed DUB 10, sited on a 35-acre land in Clondalkin, Dublin. The facility spans 44,323 square meters and planned to provide 84MW of IT load capacity upon full build. Phase 1 of this data center is already under development to deliver 40MW capacity which will be powered by the national grid.

In July last year, Echelon announced that it has been granted planning permission for DUB 20, the company’s second data center in Ireland. The 100MW facility is designed to span 45,000 square meters, sited on the Avoca River Business Park in Arklow, Co Wicklow, Dublin. Echelon further disclosed that it is committed to finding 100% green and renewable solutions – wind, solar, bio-mass – to provide sustainable power options to all of its data centers.