Unlocking the potential of London’s data centres: A heat reuse opportunity

London's data centres have been found to emit enough waste heat to potentially warm up to half a million homes annually, an opportunity that is currently being missed. AECOM's latest report, commissioned by the Greater London Authority and in collaboration with HermeticaBlack, reveals the untapped energy residing within the capital's data centre estate. If efficiently harnessed, it could generate around 1.6 terawatt-hours of heat per year, easily meeting the heating requirements of areas akin to Ealing.

Entitled Optimising Data Centres in London: Heat Reuse, the report suggests policy changes that could release this potential. It recommends enhancing planning guidelines, introducing infrastructural incentives, and creating a framework to enable heat offtake from data centre operators. Future data centre designs should prioritise the re-use of waste heat for potential maximum benefit.

Currently, the uptake of heat recovery in London remains limited, unlike cities such as Geneva, which utilise up to 95% of heat from data centres. However, AECOM highlights the possibility for UK cities, including London, to embrace this for sustainable heating solutions. By leveraging the data centres' heat, up to 350,000 homes could be sustained by just a portion of the excess energy being released.

In addition to addressing environmental concerns, the report points to the social benefits of exploiting such resources. With one in eight London households still grappling with fuel poverty, data centres offer a viable, local, and sustainable heat source. Situated primarily in densely populated areas of East and West London, they provide heat potentially alleviating energy poverty locally.

Crucially, data centres also align with the UK's thrust towards AI and high-performance computing. The computational demand results in higher server temperatures, subsequently producing higher-grade waste heat, which is ideal for reuse.

AECOM’s associate director, Sustainability & Decarbonisation Advisory, emphasised the broader role of data centres within the UK's digital infrastructure landscape. Data centres should be viewed not only as energy consumers, but as integral contributors to the whole energy ecosystem.

Recognised as one of the largest data centre hubs in EMEA, London is uniquely positioned to lead in this field. With appropriate planning and investment, these centres could significantly contribute to decarbonising residential heat, addressing housing shortages, and enhancing local energy resilience.

A precedent for such initiatives exists with the ongoing scheme in North West London, where a £36m government grant has been secured to develop a heat network, intending to reclaim heat from up to three data centres annually. As early results show promise, the optimism for widespread adaptation continues to grow.