The case in summary Google plans to build a data center in Skien, Norway. This will require enormous amounts of power, possibly three times as much as their data center in Denmark. Google aims to be carbon-free by 2030, and wants to produce power to cover its own needs. To cover the power needs of a data center in Norway, it will require an area almost 20 times larger than the center of Oslo. FRP leader Sylvi Listhaug is critical of the project, and fears destruction of Norwegian nature. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. There is a lot of activity on the Google site in Skien where there are plans to build a data centre. If the IT giant establishes a data center here, it will require enormous amounts of power. Will produce its own electricity In Denmark, where the company opened a data center in Fredericia three years ago, Google is investing in solar cells to cover the need. Five solar parks supply the power grid with more power than the data center needs. Producing its own green electricity is important to Google. The company aims to be carbon-free by 2030, says Google’s political head of data centers in the Nordics, Niels Martin Andersen. – It’s about us wanting to take the lead when it comes to green change, says Andersen. Google’s data center opened three years ago in Fredericia in Denmark. The company invested DKK 4.5 billion. Photo: Google The data center planned in Norway can be much larger than in Denmark. In that case, the power requirement will be three times as great. If Google is to cover this itself, it will require an area that is almost 20 times larger than the center of Oslo. This corresponds to close to 130 wind turbines. Fact: We have used these figures. news has assumed that Google’s data center will have an output of 500 MW. At full operation 80 percent of the year, NVE has calculated that the center uses 3,504 GWh. If you are to obtain this electricity from ground-mounted solar power, you will need an area of around 35km2. According to Fifa’s standard, this amounts to 4901.96 football pitches with solar cells. When it comes to wind, NVE believes that an 8MW wind turbine can produce 27.2 GWh at full power. That amounts to 128.8 wind turbines if one is to produce the power Google needs. Critical of destruction of Norwegian nature Frp leader Sylvi Listhaug is critical. – I imagine a destruction of beautiful, Norwegian nature. I don’t think people in the Grenland area want that. If that is the premise for the project, I believe that you cannot go ahead with it, says Listhaug. FRP leader Sylvi Listhaug. Photo: Mirwais Moquim / news In Skien, all the parties, except Rødt, voted yes to Google establishment. Labor Party and Conservative Party positive about wind power The Labor Party’s mayoral candidate, Odin Adelsten Bohmann, says they are positive about more power development, including wind power. – There is probably something in the future, but we cannot at the present time say yes in principle to wind turbines regardless of where. It must be handled when and if an application arrives. In the short term, he believes that it is solar energy that can most quickly increase the energy volume and is positive both about the development of rooftop areas and the establishment of solar power plants. – We are for that. Not anywhere or at any time, but we are fundamentally in favor – that we too take part in securing tomorrow’s business world’s need for more power. The Conservative mayoral candidate in Skien, Marius Roheim Aarvold, warmly welcomes Google. He allows wind farms to be established in Skien to provide more power for, among other things, the planned data centre. – We need more power and are open to all forms of renewable energy. We believe we must see where it is possible to place wind farms in Skien, but it cannot be the case that all the turbines are to be placed here, says Aarvold. Need Google People in Skien are positive that Google can establish a large data center in the municipality. Google’s site at Gromstul in Skien where there is a lot of activity during the day. Photo: Martin Torstveit / news Although it may require seven times as much electricity as the entire municipality uses. – Skiing needs something to make it better and people get jobs, says Einar Johansen. – It is so dead here that there is no town left. If we get parking spaces and Google, we are satisfied, says May-Britt Brovik Svendsen. Jamil Babayev believes there are advantages and disadvantages to Google establishment. Photo: news – It’s nice to have jobs here in the city, but power drains are not good, says Jamil Babayev.
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Here, Google covers the power requirement with a solar park
