Data centers in EMEA are poised to consume up to 121TWh of energy by 2030 - nearly as much as the entire energy demand of Belgium in 2022. Added to this, the fallout from the war in Ukraine has accelerated Europe’s energy crisis, driving up costs while interest rates climb. At the same time, the urgency to hit net zero targets by 2050 is galloping ever closer, making it a challenge today.
It’s a perfect storm: soaring demand for compute power amid the digital surge post-Covid, coupled with an AI boom, and tightened energy budgets, leaving tech leaders with a stark reality - scale sustainably or risk spiraling costs and missed climate commitments. What this really requires is a new approach: rethink data infrastructure with a focus on energy efficiency.
Helping to weigh up the challenges and the opportunities facing data center professionals, Atlantic Ventures conducted a detailed analysis of the potential sustainability benefits of hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) and hybrid cloud platforms. The report reveals how organizations that follow this route can cut energy demand by over 27 percent compared to traditional setups. When scaled across Europe, the impact is startling—a potential saving of 92TWh of electricity and €25 billion ($26.4bn) by 2030.
The Energy Dilemma
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global electricity consumption is climbing with no signs of slowing, and data centers play a substantial role in this. Currently, data centers in the European Union consume an estimated three percent of overall electricity demands, with predictions of this percentage rising significantly in the future.
The situation might be more severe than anticipated due to inconsistent data reporting in some regions. From September this year, operators in the EU with facilities rated at 500kW or above must report their energy use and water footprint, which could lead to revealing even higher consumption figures.
While these numbers paint a worrying picture, sustainability can no longer be a distant regulatory target. It’s a necessity, driven by immediate challenges which include rising energy costs, tighter ESG regulations, and increasing public expectations for climate accountability. Tech leaders who have yet to commit to sustainable practices and modernization projects will likely find themselves faced with mounting pressure from within their organizations and regulatory bodies.
Architectural Shifts for Greater Efficiency
The transformation towards sustainability can be complex, involving key decisions about data center infrastructure. Staying on-premises offers control over infrastructure and data but poses questions about energy sourcing. Shifting to hybrid or cloud models can leverage the innovations and efficiencies of hyperscalers, particularly regarding power management and green energy procurement.
One of the most significant architectural advancements in this context is hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI). As we know, traditionally data centers operate using a three-tier architecture comprising separate servers, storage, and network equipment. This model, though reliable, has clear limitations in terms of energy consumption and cooling efficiency. By merging the server and storage layers, HCI reduces both the power demands and the associated cooling requirements. Software optimization within HCI further amplifies these benefits, paving the way for more streamlined operations.
Real-World Impact: What the Numbers Tell Us
The Atlantic Ventures report provides us with a detailed analysis of the potential sustainability benefits of HCI using a model company scenario. The results are significant. Shifting from a traditional three-tier setup to an HCI-based architecture can deliver energy efficiency gains of 27 percent. When deployed in a modern colocation site, this efficiency increases by an additional 13 percent. Leveraging HCI within public cloud environments accelerates these gains even further, achieving up to 27.96 percent more efficiency.
Scaling this impact across Europe, the model predicts savings of 91.7 TWh of electricity between 2024 and 2030. This translates to a reduction of 18.7 million tons of CO2 emissions—a figure equivalent to the annual emissions of 4.1 million cars. Financially, these savings could total up to €25.1 billion ($26.5bn) across the EU within the same period. The UK, with its higher energy prices, stands to benefit the most, potentially saving €3.3 billion ($3.5bn) from this transition.
An Urgent Mandate for Change
For tech leaders, these findings underline the need for a proactive approach to data center sustainability. The drive to create more efficient and environmentally conscious data centers is not just about cost control; it’s also about meeting the expectations of regulators, customers, and stakeholders. As AI and other compute-intensive technologies continue to proliferate, organizations must reassess their infrastructure strategies, not just to meet sustainability goals but to remain competitive.
In the end, sustainability in data centers is a multi-dimensional challenge involving infrastructure choices, energy sourcing, and regulatory compliance. Yet, as the report by Atlantic Ventures shows, there is a clear route to progress. By investing in HCI and considering hybrid and public cloud options, tech leaders can create a robust and sustainable data center strategy that benefits both the environment and the bottom line.
