VoltaGrid, an energy management and microgrid power generation firm, has partnered with Vantage Data Centers to deploy 1GW of off-grid natural gas generation across its North American portfolio.
The partnership will leverage VoltaGrid's natural gas microgrid, which will be integrated into Vantage's data centers as its primary power source.
“Cloud and AI technologies require the rapid development of additional data center infrastructure. The sector faces a major hurdle in securing timely power at scale,” said Dana Adams, president of North America at Vantage Data Centers. “Partnering with VoltaGrid is an ideal solution to deploy capacity in constrained power markets to meet customer demand for new and innovative technologies that will bring social and economic benefits.”
A crucial factor in the partnership is speed to market, which the partners say will ensure hyperscale customers have the required power infrastructure in an expedited timeframe, avoiding long grid connection queues. According to VoltaGrid, its solution is engineered for quick deployment and installation, which it claims can be achieved within months.
“Our ability to rapidly deploy scalable energy solutions will redefine industry expectations and provide AI hyperscalers with the means and confidence to continue to scale their operations,” said Nathan Ough, president & CEO of VoltaGrid.
The partners claim that the microgrids will be implemented with sustainability in mind, with up to 98 percent emissions reduction specifically from criteria air pollutants. In addition, VoltaGrid has said that its microgrid can operate on 100 percent hydrogen or renewable natural gas.
Last month, VoltaGrid partnered with gas engine provider Jenbacher on a new modular natural gas power system for the data center market. The QPac platform generates 20MW per reciprocating node and can be combined to deliver up to 200MW of prime power.
VoltaGrid claims it will be able to deploy up to 50MW of QPac units per month, with deliveries commencing to US customers beginning in 2025.
DCD has contacted VoltaGrid to determine whether the QPac system will be used to power the Vantage data centers.
VoltaGrid has supplied several data centers with mobile gas turbines. In August, it agreed to supply the Elon Musk-owned xAI Memphis data center with 14 mobile generators, each of which is capable of providing 2.5MW, giving it an additional 35MW of power capacity.
Vantage Data Centers is one of the leading providers of wholesale data center infrastructure for hyperscale cloud providers. It has several data center campuses across the US, including in Quincy, Washington; Ashburn, Virginia; Phoenix, Arizona; Montreal and Quebec City, Canada. Vantage is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.
Last June, it announced plans for a $185 million data center development in New Albany, Ohio. The $185 million investment will be split with $110 million going to building the data center, and $75 million on IT hardware.
The plans shortly followed an announcement that the company raised $9.2 billion in equity in a round led by DigitalBridge Group Inc. and Silver Lake. The capital raise was “significantly” oversubscribed and upsized by $2.8 billion. The company said the proceeds will be used to fund Vantage’s growth across North America and EMEA.
