Photo: “We are already having conversations with a number of AI startups, hyperscalers, and multinational corporations who need high performance computing,” said Eyjolfur Magnus Kristinsson, CEO of atNorth.
Supplier of colocation, HPC, and AI services in the Nordic region, atNorth, has announced plans to expand into Finland. A new mega site will be built on a 21-hectare property in Kouvola, 52 kilometers from the city of Hamina and 139 kilometers northeast of Helsinki. The location, known as FIN04, will be atNorth’s fourth campus in Finland and its tenth data center in the Nordic region. Its location complements atNorth's expansion plan.
This FIN04 colocation facility will have a route to power reaching several hundred megawatts when completely developed, with an instantaneous power supply of 60 megawatts (MW) with the first phase, ready for operation in the second half of 2025. The facility will serve both build-to-suit and colocation clients.
"This agreement is one more significant milestone for atNorth. As we continue to develop and satisfy the increasing demand for high performance services, Kouvola is a crucial location for our future facility," said Eyjolfur Magnus Kristinsson, CEO of atNorth. “We are already having conversations with a number of AI startups, hyperscalers, and multinational corporations who need high performance computing. These firms see the obvious advantages of relocating their IT workloads to the Nordic region to reduce carbon emissions. In line with our goal, we are setting the standard for data center infrastructure that is future-proof across the Nordic region."
- story continues below the image -
The Kouvola Area
The Kouvola area is renowned for its eco-friendly methods. In keeping with the requirements of neighborhood companies, inhabitants, and communities, the city integrates a circular economy into the architecture and design of its infrastructure.
"Kouvola is a popular, eco-friendly travel location. The mayor of Kouvola, Marita Toikka, said, "We welcome business investment from ethical companies like atNorth who see the benefit in helping to advance digitalization in an environmentally responsible way. We are excited to collaborate with atNorth to bring innovation, digital competitiveness and sustainability to the forefront."
In close collaboration with KSS Energia, the city of Kouvola, and other partners in the energy sector, the new FIN04 data center facility will be equipped with heat reuse capabilities that will allow surplus heat from the data center to be recovered and repurposed for potential local usage.
"We are excited to work with atNorth to implement a heat reuse practice,” said Marko Riipinen, CEO of KSS Energia. “It can serve as an inspiration for other businesses striving to meet sustainability targets and contribute to a better world.”
The FIN04 site announcement follows atNorth's recent purchase of two data center locations, the building of a third facility in Finland, and the development of a 30 MW data center in Denmark, which is scheduled to be online at the end of 2024. Additionally, the business finalized the acquisition of Gompute this year, expanding its portfolio with a second location in Sweden and a full stack HPC-as-a-Service offering.
