Plan for Microsoft data centre comes into force in Kirkkonummi
10.02.2024
Plan for Microsoft data centre comes into force in Kirkkonummi
A significant jobs cluster is set to spring up around the data centre.
BULLETIN edited 22 February 2022
The local detailed plan for development of the Kolabacken area created jointly by the Municipality of Kirkkonummi, Fortum and EKE-Rakennus has come into force. The Supreme Administrative Court has decided not to grant further leave to appeal the plan.
A new data centre, set to be one of the largest in Finland, is planned for Kolabacken, located between the Kehä III ringroad and Länsiväylä motorway. This is also likely to be the largest construction project Kirkkonummi has ever seen. The plan area covers over 100 hectares and has been owned by EKE since the 1980s.
CEO of EKE-Rakennus Tea Ekengren-Saurén states that Kolabacken and its surroundings are one of the most significant development areas in the Helsinki region. In total, Sundsberg Business Area, which Kolabacken forms part of, covers 550,000 m2.
“The data centre investment is nationally, and in particular for Kirkkonummi, very significant. It will speed up the development of the whole area more broadly. The data centre is set to be surrounded by a jobs cluster and, in close proximity to that, residential areas,” explains Ekengren-Saurén.
Labour-intensive companies are expected to move into the area, requiring high-speed data connections or an efficient electricity supply. The location between the train and metro station, alongside the Länsiväylä motorway and Kehä III ringroad, also makes for excellent connections
Emissions-free district heating with recovered waste heat
Almost a year ago, it was announced that Microsoft would be building three major data centres in the Helsinki metropolitan area, located in Kirkkonummi, Espoo and Vihti. The projects and their locations have been planned so that Fortum can recycle the waste heat generated by the data centres directly into the district heating network. According to calculations, the waste heat recovered from the centres could cover around 40% of the district heating needs of Kirkkonummi, Espoo and Kauniainen.
Ekengren-Saurén is delighted that the project will facilitate the recycling of waste heat.
“Using the waste heat from the data centre supports the carbon neutrality objectives of Kirkkonummi and the whole country. I’d love to see similar projects elsewhere.”
More information
Tea Ekengren-Saurén
CEO
EKE-Rakennus Oy
0400 607 670
tea.ekengren@eke.fi