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Data Centres | Building Information Ireland

Mar 24
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Green light for €1.2bn data centre in Co Clare

By | Upcoming Construction Projects

A €1.2 billion data centre development in Clare can proceed following a number of legal challenges.

Developers Art Data Centres Ltd initially sought permission in 2021, with An Bord Pleanala approving in 2022.

However, the project met pushback from Dr Colin Doyle, Friends of the Irish Environment CLG, Futureproof Clare, Martin Knox and Christine Sharp, who took the matter to the High Court.

In March, Mr Justice Richard Humphreys dismissed the final objection to the project, concerning a derogation license due to a bat colony in the area.

Work can now begin on the site near Ennis in Co Clare.

The development sees the demolition of an existing single-storey with pitched roof farm dwelling house and eight other farm outbuildings.

In its wake, Art Data Centres Ltd look to build six two-storey data centre buildings with three storeys of plant and office levels.

It will have a combined gross floor area of 118,740 square metres. The halls will reach a maximum height of 19 metres.

Each data centre will include data halls, associated electrical and mechanical plant rooms, loading bays, maintenance and storage spaces, office administration areas, pump rooms, water storage tanks, and plant.

Each building will have 11 backup diesel generators.

The project also sees the construction of a gas powered energy centre, comprising 18 lean-burn natural gas engines, two pump rooms and a fuel storage compound.

It includes two single-storey buildings for 20/10 kV switchgear control and a two=storey Vertical Farm building.

Developers have planned solar panels for each of the data centres as well as provisions for rainwater harvesting.

Credit: Art Data Centres

May 15
0
Huntstown Power Station Credit: Henry J Lyons Architects

Green light for €87m data centre development at Huntstown Power Station

By | Upcoming Construction Projects

An Bord Pleanála have granted permission to a new €87 million data centre development at Huntstown Power Station, following an appeals process.

The project, proposed by the Energia Group subsidiary, sees the construction of two data buildings on the land in Finglas, Co Dublin.

The data centres will be in collaboration with Microsoft.

The buildings will comprise data hall rooms, mechanical and electrical galleries and other offices, including meeting rooms and workshop spaces.

The building will also feature staff areas such as break rooms, toilets, shower/changing facilities, storage areas, lobbies, outdoor staff areas, loading bays and docks.

The buildings will rise up to three storeys with a gross floor area of C.37,647sqm.

The overall height will not exceed 112m above sea level.

An external plant with 58 emergency generators will be in a generator yard.

Huntstown Power Station. Credit: Henry J Lyons Architects

An Bord Pleanála have granted permission to a new €87 million data centre development at Huntstown Power Station. Credit: Henry J Lyons Architects

To make way for the data centres, the plan sees the demolition of two residential dwellings on the site.

Developers have included provisions for a temporary substation, a water treatment building, seven water storage tanks and two sprinkler tanks.

Existing overhead electricity lines will move underground.

Developers will install security fencing up to 2.4m high and new vehicular entrance from the North Road.

More access will be at the southwest of the site from an existing private road.

Plans are in place for 48 bicycle spaces and 208 parking spaces, including 10 accessible spaces.

A further 20 EV charging spaces and eight motorcycle spaces are envisioned. 

An Bord Pleanála’s Decision

Huntstown Power Company initially put forward plans on August 24 2021.

Permission was initially granted by Fingal County Council in 2022.

However, both heritage body An Taisce and Louth Environment Group had appealed the decision.

In its decision to grant permission, ABP outline that the Government Statement on the Role of Data (July 2022) identified data centres as “core infrastructure”.

They continued that the centres enable the twin transitions of “digitalisation and decarbonisation”.

They pointed to the grid the connection agreement with EirGrid, the Corporate Purchase Power Agreement and the ability to manage electricity demand would meet energy requirements.

The site is also located in the Heavy Industry in the Fingal Development Plan 2023-2029, which “facilitates opportunities for industrial uses, activities and processes which may give rise to land use conflicts if located within other zonings”.

However, the Board found its location outside the M50 meant that it is not located on lands more suitable for employment. These would typically be closer to public transport infrastructure.

An Bord Pleanála granted approval subject to 23 conditions.

Feature Image Credit: Henry J Lyons Architects

Aug 19
0

Dublin City Council gives go-ahead to two new Amazon data centres

By | Industry News

Amazon has been given the green light to construct two new data centres in north Dublin.

Last month, Dublin City Council approved an application by the tech giant to construct the two centres on a site in Clonshaugh Business and Technology Park.

To make way for construction, the former Ricoh building on the site will be demolished.

The new data centres will be held in new two-storey buildings, the first with a gross floor area of f12,875m² and the second with 1,445m².

Both centres will accommodate data halls, associated electrical and mechanical plant rooms, a loading bay, maintenance and storage space, office administration areas, with plant and solar panels at roof level.

The larger centre will also have two additional mezzanine levels.

A dozen emergency generators will be placed in adjoining compounds of each of the two data centres.

Amazon Web Services, a division of the corporation, already has a data centre on the same site.

The multinational has forecast that between 15 and 58 staff will be employed once construction is completed. Another 400 jobs are also estimated for the construction process.

Three objections have been made as concerns over energy capacity issues and the data centre’s contribution to the country’s greenhouse gas emissions have been raised.

Figures published by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) found that data centres consumed 14% of Ireland’s electricity last year.

Angela Deegan and Eoin O Leidhin, on behalf of the environmental organisations Not Here Not Anywhere and Gluaiseacht respectively, were among the list of objectors.

In her objection letter, Ms Deegan wrote that although there are solar panels included, the planning application also features diesel emergency generators which will result in fossil fuels sometimes being used to power the centre.

“If the plant cannot be powered fully by renewable energy, it will lead to an increase in Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions between now and 2030, contravening the Climate Act, Climate Action Plan and National Planning Framework,” she said in her letter.

Consultants for Amazon promised that the company was committed to building a sustainable business in its application.

They said that the company’s recently-operational wind farm in Galway would support the powering of its data centres in the country.

The multinational also referenced its net zero carbon emission by 2040 commitment, which sees the business to be powered by 100% renewable energy by 2025.

South Dublin County Council recently voted to ban the development of any further data centres being built in its function area during the lifetime of its 2022 to 2028 development plan.

In response to this move, a High Court case has been brought forward by Echelon DC Holdings Limited.

The Government has also called on SDCC to reverse this prohibition.