The UK is betting on AI. “AI Opportunities Action Plan 2025,” an example for European states

The whole world is buzzing with excitement over AI. While the U.S. and China are engaged in a veritable “chip war,” billion-dollar initiatives and investments are pouring in, with each country aiming for a share of the vast potential of Artificial Intelligence. Recently, Donald Trump announced the Stargate project, through which the U.S. will build AI infrastructure worth up to $500 billion. On the other hand, China announced an $8.2 billion investment fund, created through a public-private partnership, adding to the $13.8 billion fund launched last year.

In February 2025, Europe responded forcefully. During the “Artificial Intelligence Action Summit,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen launched InvestAI, an initiative through which the European Union will mobilize €200 billion for AI investments, including a €20 billion fund for the development of gigafactories, and the construction of 12 next-generation AI hubs.

Romania has entered this race timidly, launching its national AI strategy in 2024. Last year, the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca announced the construction of the first Artificial Intelligence research center in Romania, through an investment of over 105 million RON. Some countries, like the United Kingdom, recognize the profound implications of AI’s impact on humanity’s evolution and are mobilizing exemplarily. In January 2025, the UK took a decisive step in the global race for Artificial Intelligence by launching its national strategy, the “AI Opportunities Action Plan.” What lessons can Romania take from the United Kingdom’s example?

What is the “UK AI Opportunities Action Plan 2025”?

The strategy fully adopts the 50 recommendations made by Matt Clifford CBE (tech entrepreneur and chairman of the UK’s Advanced Research and Invention Agency – AIRR). It focuses on infrastructure development, flexible regulations, and accelerating economic growth. With a €16.6 billion commitment from the private sector and the prospect of over 13,000 new jobs, this plan not only drives innovation but also strengthens the UK’s position as a strategic hub for AI. This complements the €29.7 billion investment already announced in October 2024 at the International Investment Summit.

In the introductory section of the “Plan,” we learn that although the United Kingdom is the third-largest AI market globally and hosts an impressive number of talents and leading companies such as Google DeepMind, ARM, and Wayve, a new strategy is necessary. Why? The UK risks losing ground to the rapid AI advancements of the US and China. At the same time, “The risks from underinvesting [in AI] and underpreparing, though, seem much greater than the risks from the opposite”, the document states. The “AI Opportunities Action Plan” is divided into three sections, each corresponding to a government commitment. Below, we have summarized the concrete measures that the United Kingdom will take in the coming period.

  1. Investments in the foundation of AI

The United Kingdom needs world-class computing and data infrastructure, access to talent, and regulation. As a result, the government aims to ensure access to a sufficient number of data centers and computing power to support innovation and drive the development of future industries. To achieve this goal, it will invest in Sovereign AI compute (owned by or allocated to the public sector) to respond quickly to national priorities such as AI research and the support of critical services. At the same time, it will promote domestic computing (capabilities owned and operated by private companies), which will generate AI-based jobs and businesses. Additionally, it will develop international partnerships to access complementary resources (“international compute”) and support joint AI research.

In practice, the United Kingdom will develop, within six months, a long-term plan for the country’s AI infrastructure needs, supported by a 10-year investment commitment. Other measures include the following:

  • Starting in the next six months, AIRR’s capacity will be expanded by at least 20 times by 2030.
  • Sovereign computing resources will be strategically allocated through the appointment of “AIRR Program Directors” with extended autonomy, who will focus on specific missions.
  • “AI Growth Zones” (AIGZ) will be created to facilitate the rapid construction of AI data centers.
  • International partnerships will be established to increase the types of computing capabilities available to researchers and to stimulate collaborations in AI research.
  • As developers need access to quality data, the UK will unlock public and private datasets. In this regard, a National Data Library (NDL) will be created, which will identify datasets with the greatest economic and social potential. NDL will also create best practices for the secure publication of datasets that can be used to train AI.
  • Inefficient regulation could hinder AI adoption in key sectors. Regulatory authorities will be required to publish annual reports on how they have supported innovation and AI-driven growth in their fields.

In addition, the United Kingdom aims to train, retain, and attract the next generation of AI scientists and entrepreneurs. In the short term, this means training “tens of thousands of AI professionals by 2030,” including through “alternative routes” such as internships and employer-led professional training programs. The UK also aims to take inspiration from Singapore, which created a national online platform for AI skills development, and South Korea, which integrated digital literacy and AI into its education system.

  1. Accelerating AI adoption across the economy

The United Kingdom plans to make AI a central element of how services are delivered and productivity is achieved. At the same time, the government will focus on its role as a major user and client of AI services/products to support the adoption of new technologies in the private sector. To achieve these goals, the UK will adopt a flexible approach, “SCAN → PILOT → SCALE.”

  • SCAN means the government will constantly monitor the evolution of AI technologies and learn about their new use cases to integrate them effectively into its projects. In practice, this means appointing an AI specialist for each mission, creating a government team that analyzes the market, and collaborating with AI providers to understand and influence the development of future technologies.
  • PILOT refers to the rapid development of prototypes and the swift procurement of public services to launch pilot projects in high-impact areas. How? By creating a consistent framework of best practices that evolves over time for the development and procurement of AI technologies, rapid prototyping, and testing for key projects. Additionally, by providing an efficient experimentation environment with quick access to datasets, language models, and computing resources, and a fast, phased AI procurement process that facilitates the rapid funding of pilot projects and reduces bureaucracy as investments grow.
  • SCALE focuses on expanding and applying successful AI solutions across various fields so that they can help citizens and improve productivity and efficiency. To achieve this, the government will support successful pilot projects, fund them, and expand them nationwide. This process also includes national AI tenders to enable rapid adoption across different sectors.
  1. “Position the UK to be an AI maker, not an AI taker”

By 2029, the UK government estimates that AI will become a dominant factor in economic performance and national security, which is why it will support research and development of frontier AI capabilities, including in emerging fields such as AI for science, robotics, and Embodied AI. In this context, UK Sovereign AI will be created, a government-supported research lab that will collaborate with the private sector to maximize economic benefits. UK Sovereign AI will invest directly in companies, create AI Growth Zones, and form international partnerships. It will also ensure responsible access to the country’s most valuable datasets and research, support UK AI organizations in priority national projects, and attract external talent, including by recruiting promising founders or executive directors. Furthermore, it will facilitate deep collaboration with the national security community.

Take a look at the full text of the UK AI Opportunities Action Plan.

What can we learn from the UK?

The UK AI Opportunities Action Plan provides a remarkable example of an advanced AI strategy, similar to those in countries like Germany and France (). However, unlike these countries, the UK places a stronger emphasis on the practical details of implementing the national AI policy. Romania seems to have fallen into the same trap: starting in 2024, our country also has a national strategy in the AI field but still lacks a clear implementation plan.

In this context, we see several directions to learn from. Countries with advanced AI strategies invest heavily in research, development, and the implementation of Artificial Intelligence technologies, establishing clear policies for their integration into essential areas such as education, healthcare, industry, and national security. These strategies promote strong partnerships between the public and private sectors (including internationally), attract talent and resources, and create a legal framework that supports innovation. Additionally, such an approach involves consistent investments in digital infrastructure and data management, facilitating access to cutting-edge technologies and maximizing the economic and social impact of AI.

Although we cannot match the UK in terms of AI investments, as we rely heavily on European funds (through programs such as the PNRR, Digital Europe, and Horizon Europe), Romania can leverage its strengths. These include a tradition of mathematics and computer science education, which has trained hundreds of thousands of experts working at the largest international tech companies, as well as high-speed internet infrastructure, essential for the development of the IT industry. Additionally, Romania benefits from lower labor and energy costs compared to other European countries, a stable energy network, and great potential in the green energy industry.

The data center industry beyond FLAP-D. Key national policies and projects making a difference

The FLAP-D region (Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris, and Dublin) remains a leader in the European data center market, attracting the industry’s largest investments. However, major changes in recent years have accelerated development in countries like Spain, Greece, Italy, and Sweden, driven by growing concerns about energy consumption

For example, in the Netherlands, the government imposed a 9-month moratorium on permits for data centers larger than 10 hectares. Similarly, this summer, the South Dublin County Council rejected Google’s application  to build a new data center, citing concerns about the energy demand on the Irish grid and the lack of on-site renewable energy sources. Changes have also emerged in Germany, the first country to adopt dedicated data center legislation. Starting January 1, 2024, all data center operators in Germany must cover 50% of their energy consumption with unsubsidized electricity from renewable sources. Additionally, Germany mandates a PUE of 1.5 or lower starting July 1, 2027 (and a PUE of 1.3 starting July 2030).

 

In this context, we have analyzed the main programs, strategies, partnerships, and projects at the European level to understand better how countries outside the FLAP-D region are adapting to this new reality.

 

Greece, balancing red tape and digital transformation

 

Greece benefits from investments by Amazon, Google, Digital Realty, and Microsoft, which promise to create thousands of jobs and transform the country into a major data center hub in Europe. In 2023, Microsoft announced a $1 billion investment plan to build a campus of three data centers, located 1.5 kilometers north of Sparta. Similarly, Google plans to build its data centers in Athens by 2030. Unfortunately, many investors face challenges with Greek bureaucracy: Microsoft reportedly needed four years to obtain construction permits for its first data center in Greece (Spata), according to the online publication ekathimerini.com.

How did Greece achieve these milestones? Key factors include its strategic geographic location (connecting Europe to Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, by extension), economic and political stability following a decade-long economic crisis, improved infrastructure, and a highly skilled workforce.

In addition, Greece’s Digital Transformation Strategy for 2020-2025, also referred to as the ‘Digital Bible’, prioritizes digitalization, including the development of digital skills in Greek society at all levels and age groups. The strategy is complemented by projects aimed at mainstreaming the integration of digital technologies in various sectors of the economy and transforming companies into digital enterprises.

Moreover, at the beginning of 2024, the UAE Ministry of Investment and the Hellenic Ministry of Digital Governance signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop data centers with a total capacity of 500 megawatts. () Additionally, in 2021, Greece received €4 billion in pre-financing from the EU, part of which is allocated to help SMEs adopt digital technologies. Complementing these efforts are Greece’s initiatives to establish Free Trade Zones and Special Economic Zones, creating an attractive environment for investors.

 

Italy is betting on small modular reactors (SMRs)

In October 2024, Italy’s Minister of Enterprises, Adolfo Urso, announced that the country had been chosen as the location for a €30 billion investment in data centers by a foreign corporation, though no further details were provided. Just a month before this announcement, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni met with Larry Fink, CEO of the American multinational investment company BlackRock, to discuss potential investments in data centers and supporting energy infrastructure. The two agreed to set up a panel to explore possible future infrastructure projects.

American hyperscalers Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and Oracle already have data centers in Italy – Microsoft plans to invest an additional €4.3 billion to expand its cloud and AI infrastructure in the country. Meanwhile, Amazon will invest €1.2 billion over the next five years to expand its data center business in Italy.

However, the higher electricity prices in Italy compared to competing European countries remain a challenge. To address this, the Italian government plans to introduce a new legislative framework by the end of 2024, which will support the construction of small modular reactors (SMRs). The long-term goal is to turn nuclear energy into a cornerstone of the “Made in Italy” brand.

Another problem Urso acknowledges is Italy’s IT skills shortage. Microsoft is contributing to addressing this by aiming to train over a million Italians by 2025, with a focus on AI fluency and business transformation through AI. Microsoft plans to achieve this goal through collaboration with industry partners, universities, nonprofit organizations, government institutions, and others.

It is also important to remember that Italy has been a pioneer in European sovereign cloud initiatives. For example, the Cloud Italia strategy includes guidelines for the migration of public administration to the cloud. These initiatives are driving the evolution of the cloud industry in the country.

 

Norway: a model of collaboration with local data center operators

 

The development of the data center industry in Norway is based on competitive advantages such as the cold climate year-round, political stability, and the availability of renewable energy. Earlier this year, Google announced plans to build a €600 million data center (240 MW) in Skien, Norway, by 2026. This is a sign that the Norwegian government’s efforts to position Norway as an attractive country for data center operators have paid off.

In 2018, Norway launched its own data center industry strategy (updated in 2021), which was the first of its kind globally. In January 2024, the Ministry of Digitalization and Public Governance was created, responsible for digitalization and the data center industry. Additionally, Norwegian authorities are working on updating laws and regulations to address the rapid digitalization of society, a process actively supported by the Norwegian data center industry. For example, the Electronic Communications Act (Ekomloven) is being updated to regulate the data center industry as a facility related to electronic communications networks and services.

In December 2023, the Norwegian government rejected the recommendation of the country’s National Security Authority to develop a state cloud, opting instead for a national cloud solution operated in collaboration with commercial players. This decision highlighted the authorities’ trust in the Norwegian data center industry.

 

Sweden and Finland: champions of low-cost electricity

 

In June 2024, Microsoft announced that it would allocate $3.2 billion to expand its data center capacity in Sweden. This announcement comes three years after the launch of the first Azure region and the first data center cluster in the country. As part of the project, similar to Italy, Microsoft will prioritize training 250,000 people in AI by 2027.

At a press conference held alongside Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, Microsoft President Brad Smith stated that the main reason for the company’s investment was Sweden’s “forward-looking energy policy, the plentiful access to green energy, whether it’s carbon-free energy or renewable energy”.

Finland is not falling behind: in November 2024, Google purchased 1,400 hectares worth €27 million in Kajaani, a town that hosts Europe’s most powerful supercomputer, LUMI. Finland and Sweden stand out for having the cheapest electricity in Europe, according to Finnish Energy statistics. In 2023, the average electricity price was €56.47/MWh in Finland and €51.70/MWh in the Stockholm area. In comparison with Central Europe, the difference is significant: in Germany, the price was €95.18/MWh, and in Ireland, it reached €131.62/MWh.

But Finland has gone even further – two years ago, it reduced the electricity tax for small data centers to the minimum level allowed by the EU. To benefit from this reduction, one of the requirements is the efficient use of residual heat. As a result, the residual heat from the LUMI supercomputer meets 20% of the annual heating needs of the city of Kajaani in Finland. Similarly, Microsoft uses the residual heat from its data centers in Helsinki to supply approximately 40% of the centralized heating needs of the Espoo area. It is also worth mentioning that Finland has the most advanced district heating network in the world, which enables the efficient transfer of residual heat generated by data centers.

Sweden and Finland stand out for their access to renewable energy (hydropower, wind, solar, and nuclear), the reliability of electricity supply, the fast approval of projects compared to other countries, extremely low seismic risk, and the high availability of IT specialists.

 

Denmark, a leader in renewable energy

In October 2024, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang and King Frederik X of Denmark inaugurated the country’s first AI supercomputer, Gefion. It includes over 1500 NVIDIA H100 Tensor Core GPUs, operated by the Danish Center for AI Innovation (DCAI) and funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation, one of the richest charitable foundations in the world, alongside the Export and Investment Fund of Denmark, the national bank of Denmark. In its initial phase, Gefion will serve public and private organizations looking to use AI for advancements in quantum computing, energy efficiency, weather forecasting, and the medical field.

Another major project was announced in September by atNorth, which plans to build its largest data center in Ølgod, Varde, Denmark. It will cover 174 hectares, with an initial capacity of 250 MW, and will be equipped with advanced technology allowing the reuse of residual heat in homes and industrial greenhouses. atNorth operates 7 other data centers across the Nordic countries. Also in September, Penta Infra announced plans to build a data center spanning over 20,000 sqm with an IT capacity of 20 MW in Copenhagen.

Denmark’s strategy for the data center industry, which has established Copenhagen as a leading European hub, is based on its position as a global leader in renewable energy and energy security.

 

Accelerated growth of Spain’s data center industry

 

As Manuel Giménez, the executive director of Spain DC, the Spanish data center industry association, said, the Spanish sector is experiencing the fastest growth in Europe. In 2023, Madrid accounted for 61% of the industry (147 MW IT), followed by Barcelona with 14.4% (34.9 MW IT), and Aragón with 37.2 MW IT. According to the same Spain DC, by 2026, Spain could increase its installed capacity by up to six times, surpassing 600 MW. This growth will bring it closer to the major European markets in FLAP-D.

Spain stands out for its strategic position as a connection point for submarine cables linking Europe to Latin America, the United States, Africa, and the Middle East, which stimulates the growth of connectivity providers. Additionally, its location offers a high level of solar radiation, ideal for generating renewable energy. With access to green energy, developed telecommunications networks, a strong technology industry, digital talent, and innovation capacity, Spain has established itself as a top European technology hub and an ideal destination for data center investments.

Hyperscalers soon followed: two years ago, Google decided to open a cloud region in Madrid, which came with a five-year investment plan (€650 million) and includes critical infrastructure projects like the Grace Hopper submarine cable, which connects Spain to the USA and UK. In 2022, Amazon launched a cloud region in Aragon, and in 2024, it announced new investments of €15.7 billion. The plans include the construction of four wind farms and eight solar power plants. In turn, Microsoft announced it would quadruple its investments in AI and cloud infrastructure in Spain between 2024 and 2025, reaching $2.1 billion. Read more, here. To support this growth, the Spanish government plans to increase investments in the development of energy transport network infrastructures.

 

How is the situation evolving in Romania?

 

In Romania, there are approximately 130 data centers, most of them concentrated in Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Timișoara, and Craiova. Their capacity covers only 3.2 W per capita, far below the average of Nordic countries, which reach 22.6 W, and below the average of Central and Eastern Europe (4.5 W). However, Romania is approaching the performance of Nordic countries in terms of the PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) index, with an estimated average of 1.37, according to a Crosspoint Real Estate study. The Romanian data center industry benefits from advantages such as access to well-trained IT specialists and abundant renewable energy sources, including wind, hydro, and solar power. Data centers in Romania are small compared to the global market. However, there are a few that stand out due to their integrated technologies and specialization (ClusterPower, Orange Business Solutions, NXDATA, M247, StarStorage, GTS, etc.). Additionally, new projects have been announced by companies such as Portland Trust and Infinity Cloud Technologies.

In recent years, there have been negotiations with representatives of Google, Microsoft, and Amazon to build large-scale data centers in Romania, so far it seems that they have not advanced beyond the stage of discussions.

For the public sector, in April 2024, the Romanian state signed a contract with Vodafone worth 418.7 million lei for the development of the governmental private cloud infrastructure. The project is funded through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) – Component 7 Digital Transformation and includes multiple data center facilities, which will complement those already existing at ICI, ONRC, MAI, and other institutions.

Conclusion

Although Romania has national strategies in multiple areas (Digitalization, AI, Quantum Computing) there is no coherent approach to the data center sector and no concrete measures to catalyze the field. We see that countries that are accelerating their development in the data center industry are focusing on key components such as: developing the digital skills of the society, improving infrastructure (including energy transport networks), eliminating bureaucracy, investing in alternative/renewable energy sources, working with local data center operators to adapt legislation, reducing electricity taxes for the data center industry and efficient use of waste heat. All these are often integrated into coherent, long-term national digital transformation strategies.

We hope that the authorities in Romania will take inspiration from the example of these countries and learn how to better capitalize on the opportunities in the data center sector, a global industry currently valued at around $324 billion, but expected to surpass $436 billion by 2028.

DataCenter Forum 2019 in pictures

DataCenter Forum 2018, a technology marathon reserved for professionals

• Over 350 participants;
• 13 exhibitors among the big names of the data center industry;
• 14 workshops and debating sessions;
• Representatives of key organizations involved in regulating and certifying Data Centers.

This is a biref review of the second edition of the DataCenter Forum 2018, an event organized on May 10 by Tema Energy, together with its local and international partners.

“The success of the previous edition has confirmed that the local data center market needs an event such as the DataCenter Forum, which will help create and strengthen a community of specialists,” said Mihail Manole, CEO of Tema Energy.

The second edition of the DataCenter Forum did not focus only on debates and networking, but brought to the audience a lot of technology, both news and concrete solutions already validated by the market. Among the solutions that were presented could in the exhibition area was the Mobile Data Center designed and built especially for this event by Tema Energy specialists, a fully equipped and functional center where visitors were given the chance to test a Data Center Infrastructure Monitoring  platform, soon to be launched.

This year also, to fully cover the data centers topic, among the partners invited at DataCenter Forum were two worldwide recognised professional organizations, Uptime Institute and, for the first time in Romania BICSI. The representatives of the two organizations participated alongside Cristian Cucu, CIO of Government of Romania, and Mihai Manole, Tema Energy CEO, in an interactive debate at the beginning of the event, where the main trends in the field of data center industry were analyzed.

The shift from evolution to concrete answers and the problems faced by Data Centers and Data Rooms in Romania was made during the presentation sessions and at the exhibition stands by specialists of APC, Cummins, Fortinet, Hoppecke, Leoch, Nexans, Pyralis, Riello, Rittal, R&M, Uniline and Vertiv. The products presented at the DataCenter Forum 2018 covered an extended technology palette, which included standardized and prefabricated solutions for modular data centers and Micro-Data Centers, up to power-supply, power backup and fire-fighting systems.

In order to provide the audience with a full picture of the topic of data center standardization, it was approached not only from BICSI’s perspective, represented by Miodrag Kovanovic, but also from  the perspective of the major players in the market, such as Rittal or APC, who highlighted the practical advantages of complying with the regulations in force.

Another topic tackled both in the initial debate and in the session held by Scott Roots, who presented the results of the 8th edition of the Uptime Institute annual study, was the shortage of data center industry specialists. The phenomenon, which is beginning to affect the data centers in Romania, is fueled by the growth of the average age of the workforce, but also the rapid evolution of technologies and standards in this field, which requires the continuous development of new competencies.

A task that the organizers of the DataCenter Forum 2018 assume openly, as Mihai Manole explained: “For the second consecutive year, we brought to the audience not only new solutions and technologies, but also news in the field of regulation and certification of data centers . The responses we receive from specialists, operators, managers and developers of data centers and critical infrastructure show that the market needs such complete approaches and gives us hope that the DataCenter Forum is beginning to be a landmark for the local industry. “

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Data Centers the trailblazers of Industry 4.0

Cloud, IoT, BigData, Artificial Intelligence, digitalisation, robotization are a few key concepts that define The fourth industrial revolution also known as Industry 4.0. The Industry 4.0. became a buzzword in the Germany’s economic strategy landscape and was defined by Angela Merkel as  “…the fusion of the online world and the world of industrial production”, Industry 4.0. will yeld a return of over 4tn dollars by 2020 according to KPMG. Under the pressure of the release of this new technologies, Data Centers are in a continuous transformation to meet the demands and the best price-performance ratio. Even though the Romania’s Economy is far left behind in this industrial revolution, the general trends in the Data Center industry are reflected in various forms on the local market as well.

Here are the main directions:

Ongoing refinement of Gen 4 Data Centers. Known as “EdgeCore”, Gen 4 Data centers have a smaller footprint, nevertheless much more user friendly and are forming networks.

The development of architectural innovations will provide real-time scalability and increased efficiency as well as optimized operational costs due to the modular structure. They will also integrate optimized cooling solutions, high-density, Lithium-Ion batteries, etc.

Colocation services are becoming more appealing to cloud providers. As market demand increases rapidly, cloud providers  don’t have enough time to build new facilities. Moreover, some of the cloud providers are not considering Data Center Operations amongst their core competencies, thus colocation in modern and performing Data Centers enables them to focus on developing new services and increasing market share, especially that cloud sales will exceed 33 bn USD.

High-density it’s here. The Data Center Community raves about this subject for some years now, but as the volume of data in geometric progression increases, the IT resources currently available will become insufficient. The industry will increasingly focus on increasing density rather than expanding the surface of server rooms.

Operators will give up on low-power racks as they embrace maximum power and cooling technologies. Although the 10 KW / rack density remains the standard, the 15KW / rack becomes more and more widespread, and the more powerful operators turn to 25KW / rack, motivated by the introduction of hyperconvergent IT systems and software solutions.

Fast response to business requirements. The ability to quickly launch a product or service becomes a real competitive advantage for many companies, and the IT infrastructure must support this. Mobile Data Centers represent, for many organizations, the fastest solution for expanding processing power. Implementation time can reach 1-2 months, and PUE – at values ​​of 1.25-1.07. Applicability is widespread, not only in the private sector, but also in public administration, including amongst organizations from the defense and security sector.

All four of these trends are also found on the local market. From smart phones to stand-alone vehicles, the new digital economy is based on data and information that needs to be stored, processed, secured with a 24/7 availability. Can you imagine these processes without a state-of-the-art Data Center? Participate in the DataCenter Forum 2018 edition to stay abreast of trends in industry and to get in touch with the most renowned specialists.

Power cuts, a major challenge for data centers

Although power cuts are a common phenomenon in Romania, the affected organizations have vague estimates of losses. A simple calculation of the cost of missed business opportunities and the number of unsatisfiedcustomers, would fully justify investing in a powerful Power Backup solution.

1 November 2017, 16.40 – Fundeni electrical station is experiencing a breakdown. –As a result, many business and industrial areas in Bucharest are affected for more than seven hours.

Beyond the technical explanations provided by suppliers and authorities, the situation is and remains critical. Because such incidents have a high repetition rate in Romania December 2017, February 2018 … and the list will most likely expand. Because such events happen not only in the winter, but in all seasons. And not only in Bucharest, but also in Cluj, Timisoara, Brasov, Craiova, Iasi …

Data Centers can suffer heart attacks too

For a DataCenter, every blackout equals with a hearth attack, even if it takes only a few seconds. According to the Electric Power Research Institute, 98% of the power cuts last less than 10 seconds. But it is enough to cause malfunctions in a data center. This malfunctions occur because once the current has passed, switching to the secondary power source has to take place in the order of milliseconds. Charging is initially taken over by an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) system, and then, if the power supply is not resumed, or the Data Center does not have a redundant connection, the generators go into operation. Theoretically it sounds good, but according to the Uptime Institute, UPSs batteries account for 29% of the unplanned downtime that a Data Center faces, and the generators account for 10%.

So what is it to be done?

This is a legitimate question, given that almost 40% of downtime is generated precisely by the elements that should protect data centers in the event of a power failure.

The answer – especially for companies that do not have technical skills in the field of power solutions – is asking for specialised assistance

And that’s because not every organization using a Data Room or a small data center knows how to:

  • many UPSs are needed,
  • Choose the level of redundancy and the proper configuration that is needed
  • Ensure optimal operating conditions
  • Monitor and diagnose battery performance
  • Establish and execute a maintenance and testing program and so on.

The situation is becoming/is gettingmore complicated by introducing other “unknowns” such as ATCs, PDUs, the maintenance and testing of the generators, etc.

Therefore, for many organizations, resorting to the services of an power solutions consultant it’s inevitable

When it comes to providing power solutions services, the local market recommends Tema Energy as a top company for solid and easy to prove reasons:

  • Nearly 16 years experience in the field of electro-energy solutions, the company being a successful leader in this niche market.;
  • A large variety of projects implemented – the company client base varies from hospitals and data centers to financial-banking institutions and factories;
  • the “vendor agnostic” status based on an expanded product portfolio, which guarantees that organizations can choose the solution wich best meets their requirements;
  • An extensive portfolio of solutions from the most important market vendors, accessible to medium and small organizations and certified in accordance with international standards. For example, the Data Center Continuous (DCC) accreditation of diesel generators from Cummins Power Generation, one of Tema Energy’s partners on Power Backup solutions. DCC accreditation certifies the continuous operation of the generator without any restrictions on the variable load factor. (Such certifications simplify the process of designing power systems and simplify the auditing process.)

And yet another important “differentiator”, which few Datacenter integrators could provide: Tema Energy is constantly investing in expanding the support network that already has national coverage, being able to provide fast and professional services allover the country.