Data centers: Global market will grow

According to the analysts at Turner & Townsend, 95 % of data center operators expect demand for data center services to increase. 2022 is expected to be a better year for them than 2021. 70 % believe that the data center market is virtually recession-proof. However, according to the latest ""Data Center Cost Index"" from analyst firm Turner & Townsend, opinions are divided on how data centers will manage the green transition. Growth drivers in the industry are likely to be, among other things, the further increasing digitization of business processes and the growing popularity of the Internet of Things (IoT).

Adaptation to climate regulations 

According to the analysts, one of the biggest challenges for the industry is to adapt the current IT infrastructure and existing data center facilities to the new climate regulations. Despite high environmental awareness, only 40% of the industry believe their data centers will be CO2 free (net zero) in the next 5 years. Moreover, according to the index, opinions are divided on whether operators even know how to effectively reduce CO2 emissions. Due to the climate crisis, there is increasing pressure to reduce data center energy consumption. In response, some operators are trying to prepare for a bottom-up green transformation of the sector. Analysts cite the Climate Neutral Pact for Data Centers initiative as an example. Participants include Microsoft, Google and SAP, among others. About another example of how data centers can contribute to the reduction of CO2. recently reported here.

Popular markets struggle with first problems

Auch der Bau neuer Einrichtungen selbst wird eine Herausforderung darstellen. An den begehrtesten Standorten wie Tokio, Zürich oder dem FLAP-D-Markt (Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris, Dublin) übersteigt die Nachfrage nach Immobilien das Angebot. Hinzu kommt, dass die Energiebereitstellung knapp wird. Bereits 2019 wies ein Bericht der Irish Academy of Engineering darauf hin, dass die steigende Nachfrage nach zentralen Dienstleistungen in Dublin einen Ausbau der dortigen Energieinfrastruktur erfordern würde. Die Kosten wurden damals auf 9 Milliarden Dollar über acht Jahre geschätzt. Was die Investitionskosten betrifft, so ist die Hauptstadt Japans laut dem Turner & Townsend Index derzeit die teuerste. Statistisch gesehen müssen Rechenzentren dort 12,5 US-Dollar für jedes verbrauchte Watt Strom ausgeben. Der zweitteuerste Rechenzentrumsstandort ist der Spitzenreiter des letzten Jahres – Zürich. Die Durchschnittskosten in dieser Schweizer Stadt liegen bei 12,0 US-Dollar/Watt. Dahinter folgt mit durchschnittlichen Kosten von 10,3 US-Dollar/Watt das Silicon Valley. Die Autoren des Index weisen darauf hin, dass steigende Kosten das Interesse an Investitionen auf billigeren, sich entwickelnden Märkten beeinflussen. Als ein – besonders preislich – attraktiver Standort für Rechenzentren zeigt sich etwa Polen. „Der polnische Data Center Markt ist für viele ausländische Investoren attraktiv. In den Gesprächen, die wir führen, zeigt sich klar, dass wir einen guten Standort im Zentrum Europas, eine hochwertige IT-Infrastruktur sowie relativ niedrigen Immobilien- und Energiekosten im Vergleich zu FLAP-D und Zürich haben,“ sagt Wojciech Stramski, CEO von Beyond.pl, einem Betreiber von Rechenzentren, die zu 100 % mit Ökostrom betrieben werden.

Supply chain bottlenecks and increased prices delay construction of new data centers

The situation in the construction market is an additional challenge for data center operators. 87% of the companies surveyed by Turner & Townsend said that material shortages are causing delays in data center construction. This is compounded by increases in the price of construction materials. In Europe, steel prices are said to have more than doubled in the past 12 months. For this reason, analysts point out that it is becoming increasingly popular to upgrade existing facilities and buildings instead of investing in completely new data centers. However, according to experts, this approach also has its disadvantages. After all, quite a few server rooms are located in older buildings that are not ideally designed in terms of maintenance of critical IT infrastructures and energy efficiency, because such issues were not a priority at the time of construction. A new building on a greenfield site then seems to be the more optimal solution. Source reference:

• https://www.turnerandtownsend.com/en/perspectives/data-centre-cost-index-2021/
• https://www.computerweekly.com/feature/Dublin-in-distress-Power-supply-issues-threaten-growth-of-Europes-second-biggest-datacentre-hub
• https://www.computerweekly.com/news/252469328/Irelands-power-network-needs-9bn-investment-by-2027-to-sustain-datacentre-sector-claims-report
• www.beyond.pl/de

This article originally appeared on m-q.ch - https://www.m-q.ch/de/rechenzentren-globaler-markt-wird-wachsen/