New data center firm Edged Energy is developing a data center campus in the Aurora area of Chicago, Illinois.
First reported by the Chicago Tribune, Seefried Properties is developing up to three data centers on the southwest corner of Bilter and Eola roads in Aurora, to the west of Chicago.
City Council members on the Building, Zoning, and Economic Development Committee this week recommended a plan revision and preliminary plan for a data center on the southwest corner of Bilter and Eola roads in Aurora. The land previously wasn’t zoned for industrial uses to prevent large logistics warehouses, but is surrounded by land zoned for such uses.
The 65-acre site, at 2725 and 2815 Bilter Road, is close to CyrusOne facilities and near a ComEd substation. However, once complete Seefried Properties is set to hand the property over to Endeavour Edged Electric, which owns the land. The site was previously owned by DuPont Property Ventures.
Edged Energy is a newcomer promising "net-zero digital infrastructure" for the Edge. The company plans to develop low-power waterless facilities with a PUE of 1.15 that utilize local renewable energy, primarily roof-mounted and ground PV installations.
The plan is to eventually have three buildings on the property, with the shell for the first building ready by December 2023. Facility sizes weren't shared, but Building 2 will be the largest, set to be double the size of Building 1. The development would include electric vehicle charging and ‘alternative’ fuels for its backup generators as well as on-site solar panels. A new on-site substation is also planned.
Developers told the CT they cannot say which company would anchor the new data center, but it would be one of Apple, Google, Microsoft, or Amazon. Edged will reportedly be investing $500 million into the project and isn't taking any local tax breaks.
“By attracting Fortune 100 companies, this is truly becoming a tech corridor along I-88,” said Alex Alexandrou, the city’s chief management officer. “We’re very excited about this opportunity to generate this kind of activity without much impact.”
Seefried is a US real estate developer traditionally focused on logistics and warehouse industrial developments.
The first mention of Edged came in 2021 when Iberian real estate company Merlin Properties announced it was branching out into data centers in partnership with the new company.
The two companies said in 2021 they were planning facilities across Spain and Portugal in Madrid, Bilbao, Barcelona, and Lisbon. The sites in Barcelona and Madrid will reportedly support up to 20MW each, while the Bilbao and Lisbon sites can support up to 100MW each (20MW in the first phases).
The Bilbao-Arasur site broke ground in May 2022 and nearing completion, according to Edged’s LinkedIn page, and will include up to 200MW of on-site battery storage. The Madrid facility, also under construction, will include 4,000 square meters (43,050 sq ft) of photovoltaic panels on the building exterior.
On its website, Edged said it is developing new sites in Europe, North & South America, the Middle East, and Asia, but hasn’t provided more details. The company recently filed to develop a data center in Atlanta, Georgia.
Parent company Endeavour was set up early in 2020 by Aligned founder Jakob Carnemark. Its other companies include microgrid firm GridgeBlock, GigaGrid, ‘green diesel’ firm Pact Fuel, and water filtration company Voltech Water.
As well as Aligned, Edged staff include former Global Switch, Flexential, Ferrovial, and Skanska alumni.