SCIENCE

CSC is to establish one of the world's most eco-efficient datacenters in the Renforsin Ranta business park in Kajaani, on the site of the former paper mill of UPM in northern Finland. The datacenter will be built jointly by CSC and UPM, and it will provide a state-of-the-art environment for supercomputers, data storage, and other demanding IT systems.

The construction work of the datacenter will be started during this autumn and the center will be completed in early 2012. During the construction phase the project will employ several tens of people. Besides CSC, other companies are also expected to utilize the datacenter facilities.

"The datacenter project is extremely important for Finland. It will strengthen the international competitive ability for Finnish research by providing an eco-efficient location for the new supercomputer and the services it will make available in Finland. With this project CSC, administered by the Ministry of Education and Culture, is also advancing Finnish business and the generation of new jobs", says Henna Virkkunen, Minister of Education and Culture.

"Our aim is to create one of the world's most eco-efficient datacenters, to be operated using locally produced energy and with a minimal carbon footprint. All the alternatives we have considered contain a binding offer on energy from the business park's own network. This will bring significant cost benefits in electricity transfer costs", says Kimmo Koski, Managing Director of CSC.

The computer datacenter requires a lot of electricity, which is generated by hydroelectric power plants in Kajaani. The cooling water required comes from the nearby river.

"CSC's decision to establish the datacenter in Renforsin Ranta business park in Kajaani is an important development step for the industrial complex. The project will bring more jobs and new companies to the site," says Kaj-Erik Lindberg, Vice President, Real Estate, from UPM.

Renforsin Ranta is a business park that was founded by UPM in 2008 on the site of its former paper mill. The existing diversified infrastructure makes Renforsin Ranta an attractive option for new companies seeking to grow. Currently the business park houses 25 companies that employ more than 500 employees. One of the strategic growth areas of Renforsin Ranta is measurement and information technology.

CSC – IT Center for Science Ltd. provides higher education and research institutions with Finland's best IT resources, powerful supercomputers, and extensive storage capacity. CSC also receives data from CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, maintains academic library systems, and offers data storage services for the National Audiovisual Archive, KAVA for the digital archiving of all radio and television programs in Finland.

The amount of data being transferred over communication networks is rapidly increasing, and in the future, users will increasingly rely on servers for data storage. In international comparison, Finland's location and provisions are excellent for large and cost-effective IT datacenters. Well-functioning data traffic, cool climate, industrial facilities, solid bedrock, and waterways create a competitive edge for building computer facilities with sustainable development.