How Can Data Centres Transition to Clean Energy?

Modern data centres consume significant amounts of electricity. High-density servers create power demands that many data centre facilities struggle to keep up with.

To ensure that energy consumption is as efficient as possible, data centres typically use power purchase agreements or renewable energy certificates to lower their emissions and keep within the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED).

At CFP Energy, we provide instant, secure access to Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) and Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) to decarbonise your data centre. To see how you can start instantly abating your carbon emissions, contact our carbon specialists today.

The Need for Data Centre Clean Energy

Data centres, according to the International Energy Agency, are using more and more electricity each year, making them particularly vulnerable to energy price volatility.

To stay within the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) and meet broader climate commitments, data centres must carefully monitor and optimise their energy consumption.

Renewable power offers one of the simplest ways to achieve this goal, while also cutting Scope 2 emissions - a key benchmark in sustainability reporting.

How Data Centres Access Renewable Energy

Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), one of the key tools in addressing unsustainable energy consumption. PPAs allow the buyer to purchase directly from renewable generators, ranging from wind farms to solar panel installations.

Typically lasting from 10 to 20 years, PPA contracts allow data centres to hedge against the volatility of spot markets. These agreements deliver price certainty and long-term energy security that traditional supply contracts can't match.

On-site generation is another effective pathway to accessing renewable energy sources, particularly for data centres located in large areas of land.

In practice, solar panels are best suited to buildings with ample roof space or areas with sufficient ground space to install and position the panels. Small wind installations, meanwhile, are most effective in open, wind-exposed locations.

Green certificates, such as Guarantees of Origin (GOs) or Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs, are another option - verifying the use of sustainable energy to meet compliance and support renewables.

What Is Sustainable Energy for Data Centres?

 Sustainable energy refers to any source of power that doesn't burn fossil fuels. The most common alternatives to fossil fuels at present are wind power, solar panels, and hydroelectricity.

Solar farms are often a good match for data centres. This is because solar farms regularly exceed gigawatt capacity, making them ideal for data centres where it is not uncommon for power consumption to run into 100s of megawatts.

Wind farms are another source of renewable energy. In the UK, however, onshore wind can be somewhat intermittent. Offshore wind, by contrast, generally delivers higher capacity loads. Data centres located on the coast, therefore, are usually well placed to benefit from offshore wind.

Although relatively limited in availability, hydroelectric power can also help deliver sustainable energy for data centres. This is because hydroelectric power provides exceptional baseload characteristics, making it ideal for 24/7 operations like data centres.

Data Centre Renewable Energy - Overcoming Clean Energy Challenges

Although clean energy is the only true ongoing solution, accessing renewables can still prove problematic. Variable generation creates the biggest problem. Because solar panels can only generate power during the day, they can’t generate electricity at night.

This means that the supply is necessarily intermittent. Wind turbines suffer from a similar problem: being only able to operate during periods of significant wind, defined by the IEA as a minimum cut-in wind speed of around 3–4 meters per second (m/s), wind turbines cannot provide a continuous source of power.

But this doesn’t mean that renewables aren’t effective. It just means that they must be carefully integrated and managed. Until large-scale energy storage becomes available, renewables, supported by long-term contracts like PPAs, must be added with careful load management strategies to ensure consistent delivery and continuous 24/7 uptime.

CFP Energy: Your Renewable Energy Partner for Data Centres

At CFP Energy, we know how to transition high-consumption facilities to clean energy without impacting operations. We structure power purchase agreements that fit your consumption patterns. With extensive market access and over 20 years’ experience in the industry, we can find a solution to your data centre and green energy ambitions.

To see how we can help you access renewable energy and instantly cut your carbon emissions, contact our carbon team today.