An ambitious project named ‘European cloud services in an open federated ecosystem’ (ECOFED) has been initiated by a Dutch consortium, which aims to transform the European cloud landscape. The goal of this project is to build a federated European cloud. It is being directed by five well-known Dutch enterprises and knowledge institutions: Info Support, i3D.net, BIT, AMS-IX, and TNO. Co-funded by the Dutch government and greenlit by the European Commission, the project was launched yesterday.
The launch of ECOFED corresponds with the December 5th, 2017 European Commission approval of the IPCEI-CIS initiative, an Important Project of Common European Interest. With a massive 2.6 billion euro investment, this initiative is expected to completely transform the way that cloud infrastructure is developed in Europe. As one of the main contributors to IPCEI-CIS, the Netherlands has committed €70 million to three initiatives, one of which is ECOFED, which focuses on cloud federation as the cornerstone of next digital infrastructure.
The main objective of ECOFED is to promote the unbundling of software and cloud solutions by creating open interfaces and open-source software tools. By making migrating within the cloud ecosystem easier, this project hopes to provide consumers greater flexibility and options. The creation of a national testbed to achieve these goals is essential to the project.
Spanning from 2024 to 2027, the ECOFED project collaborates with European partners like OpenNebula and Arsys in Spain, Engineering in Italy, and SAP in Germany. The ambition is to establish a technical base for an open, federated cloud ecosystem, enabling integrators and infrastructure providers to trade various services without relying on a central platform.
Cloud Sovereignty, Decentralized and Open
The goal of the ECOFED initiative is to take use of the Netherlands’ extensive cloud service provider network and strong data center infrastructure. It wants to serve as the country's test bed for businesses moving from closed hyperscale cloud platforms to a federated cloud environment.
The CTO of i3D.net, Stefan Ideler, stressed the significance of a decentralized Internet environment and pledges to work with partners to create an open and distributed cloud platform. The purpose of this action is to promote prospects for development in the digital sphere.
BIT's Wido Potters highlighted the consortium's goal of developing technologies for a federated, decentralized cloud that would provide European residents cloud sovereignty and enable cloud mobility for businesses.
One of the biggest Internet hubs in the world, AMS-IX, emphasizes how important it is to set up an open and federated cloud. The CEO of AMS-IX, Peter van Burgel, sees this move as evidence of the Netherlands' status as the digital center of Europe and its pioneering role in implementing cutting-edge technology.
The securing of European funding would mark a pivotal step towards envisioning the future of cloud infrastructure. Lammert Vinke, Unit Manager at Info Support, acknowledged the technical challenge and the importance of contributing to a decentralized, open, and federated cloud that supports European data sovereignty. TNO, a leading knowledge institute and a key player in the ECOFED consortium, is committed to applying scientific knowledge to create an open and future-proof digital infrastructure.
In a move towards transparency and collaborative growth, the consortium plans to develop a website to keep stakeholders and interested parties updated on the project's progress. Additionally, the participants will actively share knowledge through various platforms such as events, workshops, knowledge sessions, and webinars, reinforcing the communal spirit of innovation and advancement in the cloud sector.
