Helen to Use Waste Heat from New Data Centre in Helsinki’s District Heating Network
Helen and OnZero have signed an agreement to utilise waste heat from a new data centre in Helsinki’s district heating network. The planned facility could generate more than 500,000 megawatt hours of heat annually, enough to meet the heating needs of around 70,000 flats.
Helen is continuing to expand its use of waste heat as part of the transformation of its district heating production. The company has agreed with OnZero Finland Oy to connect waste heat from a new data centre to Helsinki’s district heating network.
The recovery of waste heat from the data centre is scheduled to begin in 2027. Once fully operational, the facility could supply more than 500,000 megawatt hours of heat to the district heating network each year.
Waste Heat Supports the Clean Transition
Utilising waste heat reduces the need for combustion-based heat production and supports Helen’s goal of moving towards a cleaner energy system.
“By harnessing waste heat from OnZero’s data centre for Helsinki’s district heating system, we can reduce the need for combustion-based heat production in a cost-effective way while ensuring that district heating remains a competitive and attractive heating solution for customers in the future. Our goal is to phase out combustion-based energy production by 2040, and the increased use of waste heat is an effective way of supporting that transition,” says Tuukka Toivonen, COO, Strategy and M&A at Helen.
Long Experience in Recovering Heat from Data Centres
Helen already has established solutions for recovering and utilising waste heat from data centres. The company has been integrating data centre waste heat into Helsinki’s district heating system and supplying the recovered heat to residents since 2010.
Data centre projects that make extensive use of waste heat reduce the overall burden on the energy system and place less additional demand on the electricity grid. The agreement with OnZero further strengthens the role of waste heat as a source of heat for Helsinki.