The project aims to prolong and maintain the life of the mission-critical systems at PAR6. Schneider Electric equipment, including its Low Voltage (LV) and Medium-Voltage (MV) electrical equipment, switchgear and three-phase uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) will all fall into the scope of the project, which is in line with Digital Realty’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) commitments.
Digital Realty will benefit from the partnership by being able to reuse key pieces of its electrical infrastructure and components.
The partnership will see new take-back, recycle and refurbish programs deployed to help reduce Digital Realty’s e-waste and scope 3 emissions, while removing high impact greenhouse gases such as SF6.
It also includes a plan to undertake an industry-first battery rejuvenation assessment to extend the lifecycle of Digital Realty’s VRLA UPS batteries.
The ambition is to create a roadmap that enables Digital Realty to replicate, deploy and scale-up its circularity initiatives across its sites in Europe.
Over the next 3-5 years, the circularity project is expected to help Digital Realty save and avoid 50%-70% of the embodied carbon within its LV, MV and three-phase UPS equipment, while prolonging equipment lifecycles.
“We are constantly adapting our strategy and operations to meet the challenges of sustainable development: the circularity of equipment, in this case electrical equipment, is one of the major levers for decarbonizing our activities and our value chain. This is where our collaboration with Schneider Electric, a partner of over 20 years, really comes into its own,” said Fabrice Coquio, senior vice president and managing director of Digital Realty in France.
“Being a good global citizen isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s good business sense, and as we move forwards, our ambition is to help customers meet and exceed their environmental goals by leveraging our services,” he added.
Schneider Electric and Digital Realty first partnered on circular economy practices at Digital Realty’s PAR5 data, also in Paris, in late 2022.
“With European data centre growth reaching a record high, driven by the adoption of AI, it’s imperative that operators across the region explore and innovate their approaches to sustainability,” said Marc Garner, senior vice president, secure power division at Schneider Electric, Europe said.
“As we look to the future and digital demands proliferate, its vital that technological advancement moves hand-in-hand with circular economy principles – ensuring we build the data centres of the future responsibly for the next generation.”
