The worldwide surge in AI and machine studying growth is fuelling a speedy expanse within the information centre market. However this progress dangers being hamstrung by energy constraints and gear delays. AI requires bigger, extra complicated and power-hungry information centres to handle the extraordinary technological calls for, however the provide chain and nationwide energy grids are struggling to maintain up.
The annual Information Centre Value Index from world skilled providers firm, Turner & Townsend, analyses the present common value per watt to construct information centres in 50 world markets, and makes use of survey responses from 250 sector leaders to pinpoint developments throughout the information centre business.
The highest of the associated fee index exhibits how prices are being impacted by constraints in high-performing markets, the place demand is exceeding obtainable energy, the availability of abilities and supplies. Tokyo, at US$14.3 per watt, is the costliest marketplace for the second 12 months in a row – with labour shortages and new limits to working additional time persevering with to place pressure on supply. In the meantime, Singapore is now the world’s most power-constrained information centre market and has risen into 2nd place within the rankings, at $US13.8 per watt, from fifth place final 12 months.
These are adopted by longstanding hotspots together with Zurich (US$13.3 per watt), Silicon Valley (US$12.8 per watt), and New Jersey (US$12.4 per watt) – which seem persistently within the high 5 of the index. These mature markets identified for industrial innovation and know-how could be anticipated to see additional development because the AI and machine studying revolution continues.
That is the eighth 12 months of the index, and sees 5 new markets added: Lagos, Helsinki, Lisbon, Cardiff and Bordeaux. This displays the numerous and rising variety of new targets for funding in information centres. Given the restricted current provide chain functionality in these new markets, a number of enter the index with greater comparative prices than is perhaps anticipated, however that is forecast to stabilise over time. Lagos (joint sixth at $12.0 per watt) is one instance of this – with prices pushed by the necessity to import a lot of the labour and supplies.
The info centre pipeline in Scandinavian markets additionally stays sturdy. The colder climates and entry to renewables counteract frequent challenges regarding cooling and web zero. But excessive dependency on a world provide chain and imported expertise has value implications. Oslo, Copenhagen and Stockholm now stand at ninth and joint tenth respectively within the rankings. Competitors for provide chain experience is about to warmth up over the subsequent 24 months as information centre builders transfer into the Scandinavian market and compete with established hyperscalers for sources. Expertise shortages are additionally partly behind Auckland’s speedy rise from sixteenth place in 2023 to joint sixth, because it sees a restricted provide chain and a few lack of abilities to neighbouring Australia.
Becoming a member of Copenhagen and Stockholm in joint tenth within the rankings is London at US$11.2 per watt. The UK is about to be an more and more vital market as funding is spurred on by the British authorities’s latest classification of knowledge centres as ‘crucial infrastructure’.
In gentle of the potential growth led by the AI revolution, and purchasers exploring new places, Turner & Townsend is recommending methods to mitigate the dangers of latest markets and keep away from rising prices and provide chain points. To take benefit, the report means that purchasers centralise supply to assist them higher assess world market pressures, draw on worldwide expertise, and construct up native regional capability in a coordinated means. The report additionally recommends focusing on areas with different current complicated technological building expertise, as abilities in life sciences and superior manufacturing, for instance, are extra simply transferable.
Lisa Duignan, Information Centres Sector Lead, Europe, at Turner & Townsend, stated:
“The digital revolution and curiosity in how AI can help our skilled and private lives is booming, serving to the information centre market stay one of many hottest areas of the worldwide economic system. Information centres are more and more seen by governments as crucial nationwide infrastructure, and there may be clearly an enormous alternative for purchasers – however rising challenges, not least energy provide and labour shortages, must be managed.
“Conventional information centres ideally must be close to the placement of digital demand they serve, however there may be extra geographic freedom for AI information centres the place latency is much less of a priority. This implies many purchasers are branching out into new markets for information centre building. Nevertheless, this isn’t risk-free. Whereas these places might have entry to much less constrained energy grids and keep away from current provide chain bottlenecks, this comes with programme challenges and dangers related to testing new provide chains for the primary time.
“To ensure initiatives are sufficiently resourced and unlikely to come across delays, expert labour ought to be central to purchasers’ undertaking plans. Worldwide experience can nonetheless be drawn on whereas native expertise is constructed up, and that is greatest coordinated by centralised world or regional supply of knowledge centre programmes.”
