Vantage Data Centers is spending €1 billion ($1.07bn) on a new data center campus in Dublin.
The campus will be built at Profile Park, Grange Castle, a data center hub nine miles south of Dublin which is already home to the likes of Google, Digital Realty, and CyrusOne.
Vantage launches DUB1 data center campus
Known as DUB1, the 405,000 sq ft (38,000 sqm) campus will be located on a 22-acre site, and offer 52MW of IT capacity across its first two phases. These will be a 32MW data center and a 20MW facility.
Phase one of the campus is expected to be up and running by the end of the year.
Vantage says the campus will be “highly efficient,” with a Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of 1.2 and using virtually no water for cooling.
David Howson, president for the EMEA region at Vantage Data Centers, said: “Throughout this development, there will be a significant positive economic impact to the community as we employ more than 1,100 individuals during peak construction and create approximately 165 jobs to operate the campus.
“Vantage is committed to being a good neighbor where we build and operate data centers, and we are eager to continue working with community organizations such as Round Tower GAA Club, Newcastle Tidy Towns, St. Francis Football Club, Ballyboden St. Enda’s GAA, St. Ronan’s National School in Deansrath and others.”
Supporting Ireland's under-pressure power grid
The DUB1 campus will include an on-site 100MVA multi-fuel generation plant capable of running a combination of fuels, primarily hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), a renewable fuel, and gas fed by Gas Networks Ireland.
Ireland has had a defacto moratorium on data center developments in the greater Dublin area with power operator EirGrid saying it would not accept any applications until 2028.
The Irish government stated that it would not limit or reduce the number of data centers in the country, but power problems persist, and earlier this month it was reported that AWS is limiting the compute resources customers can access in Ireland.
Vantage said its on-site plant will support current capacity constraints “by alleviating pressure on energy demand from the grid while achieving optimal efficiency and power output.”
The generation plant “is also capable of funneling power back to the grid, further supporting power availability in the Dublin area,” Vantage said. “In addition, Vantage plans to deploy HVO in place of conventional diesel fuel throughout its fleet of backup generators and is working to obtain corporate Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) for green energy, such as biomethane from local providers.”
The data center development has been welcomed by local business leaders. Peter Byrne, CEO of the South Dublin Chamber, said: “Vantage Data Centers will not only be contributing to local employment and taxation but will be ensuring the safety of our data and future-proofing business for years to come with this major investment in technology.”
Vantage has European campuses in operation and developing in Germany (Berlin and Frankfurt), the UK (London and Cardiff), Italy (Milan), Poland (Warsaw), Switzerland (Zurich), and South Africa (Johannesburg). Last year closed a €2.5 billion ($2.67bn) investment deal to fund its continued expansion across the continent.
Planning permission for the two buildings initially being built at DUB1 was first granted in 2021. But last year Vantage was refused permission to demolish a residential building on the site to make way for a third data hall which form part of an expansion of the campus. The company is appealing this decision.
