Overcoming climate challenge by running data centres on surplus energy

The idea came to CEO Ingvil Smines Tybring-Gjedde, whose career includes serving as state secretary (junior minister) in Norway’s Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, after becoming aware on many of her trips around the world of just how much gas is wastefully flared.

She joined force with the three other founders, who have backgrounds from oil companies and the supplier industry, to seek ways of using the gas to create value while also reducing GHG emissions. The result was EWP.

Conversion to power on site
Their answer is to utilise the gas at the production site. EWP’s technology achieves this by converting it to electricity for powering modular and scalable data centres designed for the tough climate conditions found offshore or in deserts, swamps or cold regions.

EWP is offering a spectrum of data processing products, especially in the realm of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, which requires large electric capacities and are less sensitive to uptime and connectivity conditions.

Linking two megatrends
Well received in the market, this solution can also be used to handle surplus energy from renewable energy sources. EWP is working with several of the biggest global players in the petroleum and renewable sectors, and with European specialists on data, cloud services and cyber security.

The solution merges two megatrends – digitalisation and the energy transition. Digitalising society calls for data centres which in turn need large amounts of electricity. EWP offers access to lots of power while also providing a climate gain.

EWP is collaborating with the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) to develop a certification for the overall Resource Utilization Efficiency of the value chain.

Unutilised energy surpluses
The advantage for customers is that they acquire a way of exploiting their surplus energy while eliminating gas flaring, which represents poor utilisation of an important energy resource.

In addition to cutting GHG emissions, users improve their environmental, social and governmental (ESG) profile while helping to provide local players with access to data processing services and cloud-based solutions.

Global market
EWP has secured energy supplies in many markets, such as Indonesia, Africa, the Middle East and the North Sea. At the same time, demand for digital services is growing rapidly across the world.

Data centres call for a lot of energy and transmission capacity, and operators in several markets are already competing fiercely to secure the power and grid access needed to operate their facilities.

The advantage of EWP’s solution is that it utilises surplus energy outside the electricity grid.