Singapore's Green Data Center Roadmap

Summary

The script discusses a new roadmap aimed at increasing the efficiency of data centers and promoting green energy partnerships. The plan includes a guaranteed 300 megawatt capacity increase and potential for an additional 200 megawatts through industry collaboration. The goal is to grow the data center industry sustainably while meeting carbon commitments by 2030 and achieving net-zero by 2050. Singapore's unique challenges as a resource-constrained island necessitate innovative approaches to energy importation and the exploration of green energy sources like solar, hydrogen, and ammonia.

Takeaways

• 🛣️ The roadmap introduces a series of strategies aimed at improving hardware and software efficiency in businesses, with a focus on fostering partnerships between data operators, clients, and energy providers for increased green energy use in data centers.
• 🔌 The plan guarantees an additional 300 megawatts of power capacity for data centers and suggests potential for an extra 200 megawatts through industry partnerships with energy providers.
• 🚀 The industry is being encouraged to increase efficiency by 35% from current levels, which is a significant gain aiming to meet the growing demand for AI tools and data center space sustainably.
• ⏳ Acknowledging the rapid growth in energy needs for AI tools, which doubles approximately every 100 days, the roadmap emphasizes the importance of not only increasing capacity but also improving efficiency across all aspects of data center operations.
• 🌿 There is a strong push for green energy, with the roadmap highlighting the need to reduce consumption, increase efficiency, and integrate green energy components into any proposals for additional capacity.
• 📈 The roadmap is based on collaboration with industry partners and is seen as an exploratory process to green the data center space, with the market ultimately dictating how far the initiative needs to go.
• 🌍 Singapore's geographical and economic situation as a small, resource-constrained island necessitates an early and accelerated transition to green energy, with a focus on importing green energy sources.
• 💡 The types of green energy to be imported, such as green electrons, hydrogen, or ammonia, are still being determined, reflecting the complexities of the energy transition and the need for innovative business and operating models.
• 🏢 The roadmap does not specify the exact amount of additional space for data centers but indicates a 30-35% increase in resources, suggesting significant investment in infrastructure.
• 🌐 Singapore's role as a regional and global hub positions it to support businesses throughout the region and beyond, with data centers serving not only the local market but also a broader, international audience.
• 💼 The initiative is expected to create opportunities and is not viewed as a zero-sum competition but rather as a collaborative effort that benefits the region, businesses, and Singapore as a whole.

Q & A

What is the main purpose of the new roadmap being discussed?

The new roadmap aims to increase the use of green energy for data centers, focusing on hardware and software efficiency, and fostering partnerships between data operators, clients, and energy providers.

What is the significance of the 300-megawatt delta and capacity guarantee mentioned in the roadmap?

The 300-megawatt delta and capacity guarantee represent the additional power that can be provided to data centers in the short term, which is part of the resource allocation and efficiency improvements being planned.

How does the roadmap address the rapid growth in energy demand for AI tools?

The roadmap addresses this by focusing on both increasing power capacity and improving efficiency. It aims to reduce consumption and increase efficiency in every possible way, including facility management, cooling, humidity, server and rack optimization, and software optimization.

What is the target increase in capacity from the industry partnerships proposed in the roadmap?

The industry players have proposed partnerships that could potentially increase capacity by another 200 megawatts, building on the initial 300-megawatt increase.

How does the roadmap align with Singapore's environmental commitments?

The roadmap is designed to help Singapore meet its 2030 CO2 peak commitments and 2050 net-zero commitments under the Paris Agreement by promoting the use of green energy and improving the sustainability of data center operations.

What is the potential increase in efficiency that the roadmap is targeting?

The roadmap is targeting a significant gain of around 35% increase in efficiency from the current state, which will involve serious resource allocation and a focus on greening the data center space.

How does the roadmap plan to address the short-term increase in emissions associated with the increased energy use?

The roadmap emphasizes the need to reduce consumption, increase efficiency, and integrate a green energy component into any proposals for increased capacity to mitigate the short-term increase in emissions.

What is Singapore's current energy situation, and how does the roadmap plan to address it?

Singapore is a resource-constrained island that currently relies on fossil fuels for its energy. The roadmap plans to import green energy and work on the green energy transition, considering various mediums like green electrons, hydrogen, or ammonia.

What role does the private sector play in the roadmap's plan for increasing data center capacity?

The private sector is involved in all aspects of the roadmap's plan, including the government guarantee of 300 megawatts and the additional 200 megawatts based on industry proposals for green energy partnerships.

How does the roadmap consider the geographical and economic situation of Singapore in its planning?

The roadmap takes into account Singapore's geographical constraints and status as a small, resource-constrained economy, which necessitates starting earlier and moving faster in the energy transition process.

What is the expected impact of the roadmap on Singapore's role as a regional and global data center hub?

The roadmap is expected to enhance Singapore's position as a regional and global data center hub by increasing capacity, improving efficiency, and promoting the use of green energy, thereby creating opportunities for the region and the businesses.

Outlines

00:00

🌿 Green Energy and Data Center Efficiency Roadmap

The speaker introduces a new roadmap aimed at enhancing the efficiency of data centers and promoting the use of green energy. The plan includes a 300-megawatt delta in guaranteed capacity and a potential additional 200 megawatts through industry partnerships with energy providers. The roadmap emphasizes the importance of resource allocation, efficiency improvements in hardware and software, and the ambition to meet sustainability goals while increasing data center capacity. The speaker also addresses the challenge of energy consumption doubling every 100 days and the need to work on both the supply and demand sides of energy use to meet the 2030 CO2 peak and 2050 net-zero commitments in line with the Paris Agreement.

05:03

🚀 Accelerating Green Energy Transition and Data Center Expansion

This paragraph delves into the specifics of the government's commitment to providing an additional 300 megawatts of power for data centers, with an additional 200 megawatts expected from green energy initiatives. The speaker highlights the necessity of private sector investments and the collaborative efforts with industry partners to explore and experiment with greening the data center space. The discussion also touches on the potential for increased efficiency and the reallocation of resources to achieve a 35% increase from current levels. The speaker acknowledges the challenges faced by Singapore's geographical and resource constraints and the need to import green energy, emphasizing the importance of creating a sustainable and socially beneficial energy infrastructure.

Keywords

💡Roadmap

A roadmap in this context refers to a strategic plan or outline that guides the development or implementation of a particular project or initiative. The video's theme revolves around a new roadmap for increasing the efficiency and sustainability of data centers. The roadmap is intended to engage businesses in improving hardware and software efficiency and fostering partnerships between data operators, clients, and energy providers, with a focus on green energy use.

💡Green Energy

Green energy is energy that comes from renewable resources, such as solar, wind, and hydroelectric power, which produce little to no greenhouse gas emissions during operation. In the script, the emphasis is on increasing the use of green energy for data centers as part of the roadmap's sustainability goals. The aim is to meet environmental commitments and reduce the carbon footprint of data center operations.

💡Efficiency

Efficiency in the video refers to the optimization of resources to reduce waste and maximize productivity. It is a core concept in the roadmap, with a focus on improving both hardware and software efficiency in data centers. The script mentions the need to reduce consumption and increase efficiency in various aspects, including facility management, cooling systems, and server technology.

💡Data Centers

Data centers are large repositories that house computer systems and associated components, such as servers, storage, and networking equipment. They are critical infrastructure for businesses and the internet. The script discusses the roadmap's aim to increase the capacity and sustainability of data centers, particularly through the use of green energy and efficiency improvements.

💡Partnerships

Partnerships in this context refer to collaborative relationships between different stakeholders, such as data operators, clients, and energy providers. The script highlights the importance of these partnerships in achieving the goals of the roadmap, particularly in the adoption of green energy and the optimization of data center operations.

💡Resource Allocation

Resource allocation is the process of distributing resources, such as funding, personnel, or energy, to various projects or initiatives. In the video, resource allocation is discussed in terms of how it will be used to support the roadmap's objectives, including the guarantee of additional power capacity for data centers.

💡CO2 Peak Commitments

CO2 peak commitments refer to the goals set by countries or organizations to reach a peak level of carbon dioxide emissions by a certain date and then reduce them over time. The script mentions the roadmap's alignment with the 2030 CO2 peak commitments and the 2050 net-zero commitments in line with the Paris Agreement, emphasizing the importance of sustainability.

💡Sustainability

Sustainability in the video is about ensuring that the growth and operation of data centers are environmentally responsible and meet long-term goals. The script discusses the roadmap's focus on sustainable practices, such as increasing the use of green energy and improving efficiency, to meet environmental commitments.

💡AI-based Tools

AI-based tools refer to applications and systems that utilize artificial intelligence to perform tasks, analyze data, and make decisions. The script mentions the desire to increase the utilization of AI-based tools within the data center space, while also ensuring that this growth is sustainable and aligns with environmental goals.

💡Megawatts

A megawatt is a unit of power commonly used to measure the output of large electrical systems, such as power plants or the power capacity of data centers. In the script, megawatts are discussed in the context of the additional power capacity that will be guaranteed for data centers as part of the roadmap, highlighting the scale of the resource commitment.

💡Private Sector Investments

Private sector investments refer to the capital provided by private entities, such as corporations and businesses, rather than by the government. The script indicates that the roadmap's objectives, including the additional 200 megawatts of capacity, will involve investments from the private sector, emphasizing the collaborative nature of the initiative.

Highlights

Introduction of a roadmap for businesses to improve hardware and software efficiency and foster partnerships with data operators and energy providers.

Goal to increase the use of green energy for data centers as part of the roadmap.

A 300-megawatt delta and guaranteed capacity outlined in the roadmap.

Industry players propose partnerships with energy providers for an additional 200 megawatts of capacity.

The importance of working on the efficiency side to reduce consumption and increase efficiency in facilities, cooling, humidity, and server racks.

The necessity to meet 2030 CO2 peak commitments and 2050 net-zero commitments in line with the Paris Agreement.

The exploration of increasing data center space and AI tool utilization sustainably.

A 35% increase in efficiency is being targeted through collaboration with industry partners.

Engagement in an exploratory process to green the data center space.

The market will dictate how far the efficiency and capacity increases are needed.

The short-term increase in energy may be associated with increased emissions if fossil fuels are used.

The need to reduce consumption, increase efficiency, and prioritize green energy to mitigate emissions.

Singapore's energy currently comes entirely from fossil fuels, necessitating a green energy transition.

Singapore's plan to import green energy, though the exact mix of sources is yet to be determined.

A government guarantee of 300 megawatts, with an additional 200 megawatts based on industry proposals.

All increases in capacity will involve private sector investments.

Singapore's experience with innovative architecture and engineering in data centers, despite land constraints.

Singapore's role as a regional and global hub, supporting businesses throughout the region and beyond.

Data centers in Singapore primarily serve regional and global markets, not just Singapore.

The collaborative, non-zero sum approach to creating opportunities for the region and businesses.

Transcripts

We can get started with this new road map because you're just part of the

process of announcing that. Really?

So what exactly is it? Well, it's a series of pathways that we

hope businesses can get on board thinking through how they do their

hardware efficiency, their software efficiency, and far more importantly,

the kind of partnerships that we want to see between the data operators and their

clients and the energy providers. Because what we want is the increasing

use of green energy for data centers. So this is a road map to that end.

And in there we lay out the 300 megawatt delta and the capacity that we can

guarantee. I mean, this is resource allocation

movements around efficiency and then a sense of ambition that we want to do

much more. The industry players have come to us.

They've got some ideas of the kind of partnerships that they can put together

with energy providers, and they think that's at least another 200 megawatts of

increase in capacity there. If we can do that, great.

If we can do more even better. 300 megawatts of additional power in the

short term. Is that enough, do you think?

Because, for instance, the World Bank was reporting that that the amount of

energy that's needed for aid tools is roughly doubling every 100 days?

So that is a lot of extra power capacity that's needed, stranded megawatts enough

to cover that, do you think? Well, that's why we have to work on the

efficiency side as well. We have to reduce the consumption and

increase the efficiency, and we have to do so in every possible way, whether

it's about the facility, the cooling, the humidity, whether it's about the

actual it, the servers and the racks and changing it out so that it's best in

class. And whether it's about the software.

We have to find ways for the business model or the operating model to use

software in the most efficient way possible, reduce the energy, take as far

as possible, and then maximize the benefit out of whatever capacity we can

unlock, whatever capacity we can unlock. Ultimately, we're constrained by energy

and carbon, and we have to meet our 2030 CO2 peak commitments and our 2050 net

zero commitments on the Paris. And so we want to do both.

We want to grow the data center space. We want to increase the utilization of

AI based tools, but we also want to make sure that we do so sustainably and meet

our commitments. How do you do that, though?

I mean, how much extra efficiency can be squeezed out right now?

And where are you also reallocating resources from?

Because if you're giving more at the data centers, who loses out on this

scenario? Well, we are working with industry.

So this plan didn't we didn't just start working with the industry today.

What we're publishing today and putting out is on the basis of very strong

collaboration with industry partners about what is possible and what is

necessary. So the amount that we're talking about,

I mean, it's something like a 35% increase from where we are today.

So it's not small. It's a significant gain.

It will create opportunity. But from our perspective, the main thing

it will do is engage in an exploratory and experiment and experimentation

process about greening the space. If we can do as much of that as possible

through green energy and through these partnerships, actually we shouldn't stop

there. And so then the idea of is it enough?

Well, the market will show us and it will show us how far we need to go.

But are you going to be increasing emissions then, with this?

In the short term, any increase in energy is going to be associated with an

increased emissions, and that's the way it is if you're using fossil fuels.

And that's why right upfront we have to reduce consumption, increase efficiency

and put that green energy component on the agenda.

So we're telling the people who are the industry players that we're working with

who want to come to us and say, give us more capacity, we're saying, well, there

has to be a green energy component to that proposal that will inform our way

forward precisely because this is what we're worried about.

But that increase in emissions, I mean, don't forget, it's not all bad.

We want to use it for good. We want to use it to deliver social good

and for public good. And so we need to be able to engage in

this space. And that means making the capacity

available for increasing aid deployments.

Pretty much right now, All of Singapore's energy comes from fossil

fuels. Indeed, And that's why we have to work

hard for the green energy transition. But where does that green energy come

from then? Because Singapore obviously has limited

resources available, not just from a land constraint perspective.

Indeed, we are a resource constrained island.

We don't have natural resources in the way that many other cities and many

other jurisdictions have. We're going to have to import energy.

We already do. That's our situation today.

If we do as much solar as we can, it might account for I think 3 to 5% of our

total national needs. And so ultimately we still have to

import energy. What we can do and what we will do and

we're intending to is import green energy.

Now, exactly what that mix is. How many of how much of that is green

electrons, how much of it is hydrogen, how much of it is ammonia or some other

mechanism or medium to bring in green energy?

That's not yet settled because that's the hard part of the energy transition,

working out what are the business models and operating models to get us through

the situation that we face in Singapore We're all going to face eventually.

We're just facing it earlier because of the.

Situation that we're in geographically, the situation that we're in in terms of

our economic development and being a small resource constrained diamond.

So we have to get started earlier and we have to move faster.

So 300 is coming from that. That's sort of a government guarantee.

The 200 you're saying is coming from green energy in particular.

And is that the portion that comes from private sector investments then?

All of it all of it will involve private sector investments.

300 is what we're absolutely certain about looking at what we have today.

The the 200 on is on the basis of these of the existing industry proposals.

This is what they've come to us and said, look, here are some ideas that we

have working together with the energy providers and other operators and

businesses and their clients. And we think this this demand and this

ability to support that demand through green energy.

So that's an indicative sense of how far we can go on the basis of today's

thinking. So more power, though, for data centers.

So that's obviously positive to data centers, get more space.

Well, you still have to I mean, although we do have a fair amount of experience

with innovative architecture and engineering in Singapore around data

centers and compute, if you visit our national supercomputing centers on the

16th floor of the building. And so we we are land constrained.

We find ways to make space available. So you will get more space to data

centers. So what are you thinking about there?

As in if you are planning to give further space to do this, what we what's

the sort of what's the amount of space that you provide have not yet settled on

that specific amount yet. Okay.

But could you give us an indication of the vicinity, what we know about the

specific location of the facility? But, look, it's it's a 30 to 35%

increase from where we are today. You know, that's not just going to

happen because we turn the temperature up in one data center or a handful of

data centers. Right.

It's going to require the allocation of serious resources in order to do this.

And that's what we are going to do. We have seen Singapore, of course, as

that competition, perhaps with others in the region as a whole really stands out

because we have seen a lot of investment there from the likes of Nvidia, for

instance, there's a BYTEDANCE backed data center there as well.

Are you seeing any sort of ground being lost?

The market is large. I mean, the market is there's a lot of

opportunity for everybody. We play today a regional role and we

play a role as a global hub. We support businesses throughout the

region, just as businesses are also operating in Johor and various other

places. So the market is large.

That's plenty for everyone. The type of businesses and the type of

operations that are located here are not necessarily the same as are located

elsewhere. I think these are decisions that

businesses will have to make. Most of the businesses that use these

large centers and these Tier three services that we have available in

Singapore, 70% of our data centers of district, they are not serving the

Singapore market. They're serving a regional market,

they're serving a global market. They have operations, including compute

operations in other jurisdictions as well.

So this type of partnership, it's not a zero sum game competition.

It's a it's a playbook that has been working very well for some time,

creating opportunities for the region, for the businesses and for Singapore.