- ECL obtains $7million to finance world’s first off-grid data centre.
- The first data center will be installed at ECL’s Mountain View, California headquarters.
The US data center company ECL said on Wednesday that it has secured $7 million in seed funding for the first off-grid data center in the world to use green hydrogen as its main power source.
The idea of hydrogen-powered data centers delivered in 1-MW blocks that are sustainable, do not use local electricity or water, and run with zero emissions is being pioneered by the creator and operator of modular data centers, ECL. The startup intends to deploy fuel cells that are totally hydrogen-powered, enabling installation in places without grid connectivity.
The initial data center will be set up at the ECL corporate office in Mountain View, California. In the second quarter of this year, it is expected to start operating.
A funding round headed by Molex Ventures, a manufacturer of fiber optic equipment, and Hyperwise Ventures, an investor in cyber security, secured the initiative’s seed capital.
While comparable facilities need between 18 and 24 months for design and construction, modular data centers might be constructed in just six to nine months. The idea would be tailored for usage by mid-sized data center operators, according to ECL. ECL was formed by data center industry professionals from businesses including Facebook, Microsoft, LinkedIn, Cisco, HPE, and Bloom Energy.