Microsoft’s Natick project in 2014 started the trend of placing data centers in the ocean. Since then, several data centers have been established in the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. Finally, according to the information provided by China Central Television (CCTV), China has started to build the world’s first commercial underwater data center on the Sanya coast in the south of Hainan Island.According to CCTV, each data storage unit placed underwater in the project can process more than 4 million HD images in 30 seconds. It is stated that each unit has the performance equivalent to 60 thousand computers operating simultaneously.
100 data storage units will be installed
After the first unit was placed in April, the second unit was placed on Friday. It is planned to install 100 units within five years. Each data unit weighs 1300 tons. Therefore, moving and placing is not an easy task. It takes 3 hours to lower the units placed 35 meters below the ocean. Developed to withstand the harsh conditions of the ocean, the data center has a lifespan of 25 years.
It will save up to 60% energy
When completed, the data center will have an area of 68 thousand square meters, or the size of 10 football fields, and will save 68 thousand square meters of land. The underwater data center also saves 122 GWh of electricity and 105 thousand tons of water. Since the cool waters of the ocean naturally cool the data center, there is no need to spend energy on cooling. Pu Ding, general manager of the project, states that when the project is completed, the data center will consume 40% to 60% less energy than its land-based counterparts.
The Hainan Subsea Data Center is being developed as a joint project by the Sanya local government and the State Assets Supervision and Management Commission of Hainan Province, supported by companies including Offshore Oil Engineering Company, Beijing Highlander Digital Technology and Shenzhen HiCloud. Beijing Sinnet, China’s leading data center and cloud computing provider, will operate the data center. The project was announced in 2021 and is aimed to be completed in the second quarter of 2025. Construction of the data center will cost approximately $879 million. Apart from this project, other projects are planned to be carried out in the Yangtze and Pearl rivers.
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