Today’s Newsletter:

• COOLING, TECH, AND POWER: Uptime says “cool it” on expectations, AI power needs are not that bad, and the first in-space data center

• CHECK THIS OUT: Our next best shot at nuclear? (VIDEO)

• BIG DEALS: PHX: highest DC prices in the land, copper shortage, more...

- Cooling, tech and power -

Uptime says “Cool it!” with DLC Expectations

Daniel Bizo, Research Director at Uptime Institute Intelligence, shares some insights and criticisms regarding how we view emerging liquid cooling technologies in data centers. Here’s why he thinks we may need to tamper our expectations:

• The effectiveness of DLC varies with its design. In many water-cooled IT systems, components are connected serially to simplify plumbing, causing components downstream to receive warmer coolant. This arrangement is common in compact, high-density servers, necessitating coolant temperatures to be lower than is feasible for the application.

• Components are only getting power hungrier. “The forces underlying the rise in silicon power remain in play.”  So constituent parts are getting hotter and hotter. In fact, we could see components exceeding 500 W by 2025, with feasibility up to 800 W.

• Processor temperature limitations also influence cooling parameters. As chips become more powerful, their maximum allowable surface temperature, or Tcase, decreases to enhance heat removal. Intel, for example, has introduced chips with a Tcase of 57°C, designed for liquid cooling to maximize performance under intense computational demands.

• Cooling challenges extend to server memory modules. In the past these memory components were a non-issue, but increased module density and speed have made maintaining acceptable temperature ranges more critical. Memory performance deteriorates above 85°C, leading to increased power consumption, latency issues, and potential data errors.
  Memory modules, often positioned after processors in cooling setups, are particularly susceptible to receiving inadequately cooled fluid, which may dictate the upper-temperature limits for the entire system.

In essence, according to Bizo, DLC offers the potential for enhancing data center cooling efficiency, but it comes with substantial obstacles.

Operators need to understand future trends, component specifications, and system design complexities. 

More in cooling, Tech and Power

1. AI Power Needs Not So Bad?: Princeton Prof. Jesse Jenkins cites historical energy needs growing far faster from 1980 to 2005 (twice as fast as is projected with AI over the next few years). “We’re a long way from getting back to the pace of growth that we saw in that era.”

2. The World’s 1st Orbital Data Center: Houston-based Axiom Space has partnered with Kepler Communications to demonstrate the feasibility of inter-satelite data transfer for their first-ever commercial orbital data center.

3. Google, Microsoft, Nucor Team up for Clean Energy: The steel and tech giants will aggregate their demand for clean energy tech. The plan is designed to accelerate the development of first-of-a-kind and early commercial projects, including advanced nuclear, next-generation geothermal, clean hydrogen, long-duration energy storage and others.

Check this out

A couple of experts I’ve spoken to say these guys may be our next best chance at usable nuclear power. What do you think?

- Deals and Developments -

Next AI Commodity Shortage: Copper

Fueled by increasing needs from AI and data centers, copper demand is set to rise by 1 million tons by 2030.

The surge is driven by renewable energy initiatives and carbon reduction efforts and looks to further strain the already looming copper supply deficit.

Saad Rahim, a very smart person and chief economist at Trafigura, said this: “On top of the energy transition, we are adding more sources of demand.
Power demand from data centers and artificial intelligence is something that analysts have not factored into their forecasts. That could potentially add a further one million tonnes of copper demand.”

And copper prices reflect this trend, nearing $9,500 per ton, signaling robust global growth.

Current global copper demand stands at 26 million tons, with predictions of a supply deficit escalating to over 100,000 tons by 2025, a stark increase from this year's 35,000 tons.

Concurrently, inadequate mine investment is poised to deepen shortages.

What’s more:

China is currently the world’s largest producer and consumer of copper, dominating global supplies of other industrial metals too.
Beata Javorcik, chief economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, said: “My fear is that escalation of geopolitical tensions is going to slow down the green transition.”
He added that rare metals needed for electric vehicle batteries and the production of other raw materials are dependent on relationships with China.

Phoenix Leads Nation in DC pricing

In 2023, data center pricing in North America soared, and  Phoenix recorded the highest rates in the U.S. market.

According to CBRE's North American Data Center Trend Report, average rates for 250-500 kilowatt (kW) monthly usage in Phoenix ranged between $170 and $200.

The city saw robust leasing activity and a notable 20% increase in renewal rates from the second half of 2022 to the same period in 2023.

The vacancy rate in the Valley dipped to 3.9%, nearly reaching a historic low.

What else?

88% of the 163.5 megawatts (MW) of data center capacity currently under construction in Phoenix has already been pre-leased. 

The high demand has put the boot on the neck of developers looking to meet the growing needs of one of the hottest DC markets in the country.

Mark Krison, executive vice president at CBRE, said this: “Last year we saw record under construction activity and preleasing levels, which is being driven in part by major hyperscalers who are developing larger campuses to satisfy long-term growth needs.”

Phoenix also benefits from its reasonably low power costs, especially when compared to nearby data center markets.

More Big Deals

• LightEdge is acquiring Connectria, adding six new data centers. LightEdge is a leading provider of secure cloud and colocation. They’re buying the cloud infrastructure and hosting provider to get access to their 400 customers and deep experience in IBM, AWS, and Azure hosting.

• Redhawk 2: Google files for 2nd Mesa data center. The 280,000 sqft building will be at Google’s existing campus on East Elliot Road and South Sossaman Road, in the Mesa area of the city.

  It also applied for permission to build an office development called Redhaw Hub. Timelines for either development weren’t shared.

  Google broke ground on the first building at the Mesa campus in July 2023.

You’re at the end. What did you think?

If you liked this edition please reply and let me know. It really helps!

- Taylor