Executive Summary
A global data centre operator and developer faced a unique challenge: providing credible renewable energy for on-site power generation at a location without access to the local electricity grid. To meet a complex web of overlapping voluntary and mandatory requirements for both themselves and their client, the operator turned to 3Degrees for expertise in navigating emerging regulatory environments and sourcing specialised climate products.
3Degrees successfully arranged a first-of-its-kind procurement of biomethane in a challenging market that met specific characteristics, providing the client with a clear roadmap for third-party verification and credible environmental claims.
Background
Data centres are increasingly required to operationalise their climate commitments, but they often face infrastructure hurdles that outpace traditional renewable energy solutions. In this case, a leading data centre operator (referred to as the “Data Centre”) was required to provide renewable electricity to support their client’s voluntary standards. However, the Data Centre is located in Ireland, and unable to connect to the national electricity grid.
To address this, the Data Centre aimed to procure biomethane, an effective and renewable drop-in replacement for natural gas that doesn’t require infrastructure overhaul. However, it was essential to ensure that this procurement option complied with its client’s voluntary standards. This required a creative, high-integrity solution for on-site power that would align with rigorous international reporting standards, navigating both the compliance and voluntary markets.
Looking for an experienced solutions provider, the Data Centre turned to 3Degrees for expert advice and credible procurement of biomethane as a sustainable fuel that would allow it to:
Claim reductions under EU ETS in Ireland
Allow its client to maintain its voluntary target
Challenges
The Data Centre needed to solve for several distinct yet overlapping hurdles:
- Grid constraints: The facility’s lack of grid connectivity meant standard energy attribute certificate (EAC) or power purchase agreement (PPA) models were insufficient on their own.
- Complex compliance: The solution had to satisfy overlapping mandatory and voluntary requirements for multiple stakeholders.
- Product scarcity: High-integrity, waste-based biomethane with specific verification characteristics is in high demand with extremely limited European supply.
- Lack of guidance: The Data Centre needed to make credible claims in a new, still unsettled regulatory environment with no clear, industry blueprint for this specific scenario, and their client needed to maintain their renewable electricity target amid voluntary guidance that is lacking.
How We Helped
In a fast-paced engagement, 3Degrees leveraged its deep policy expertise and European network of environmental commodity suppliers to architect a custom solution across three areas:
The 3Degrees team analysed how international standards apply to on-site power generation in off-grid scenarios. They provided the policy expertise needed to ensure the proposed solution satisfied both voluntary targets and mandatory compliance requirements.
3Degrees secured access to volumes of a specific biomethane product from Germany that matched the client’s precise technical and geographic needs. By identifying a product not widely available in the general market, they enabled the Data Centre to move forward with on-site power that carried the necessary sustainability attributes.
Rather than just providing a transaction, 3Degrees delivered a comprehensive roadmap for third-party verification. This included a position paper tailored to the Data Centre’s client’s specific use case, outlining how they could credibly account for their emissions reductions and report them to stakeholders with confidence
Results
Foundation for reliable, renewable electricity from biomethane.
Proven model for addressing complex power needs at other off-grid sites.
Fulfilled its customer’s rigorous climate goals and their own mandatory compliance requirements while enhancing its own reputation for innovation.
