Comparing Environmental Impact of Various Energy Sources Powering Data Centres’s at Indian Candidate Locations

Abstract

While major 21st century developments are data-intensive, the use and storage of such high volumes of data are processed through datacentres. Though Datacentres (DC) are typically high-power consumption applications, the percentage of energy consumption is even higher in developing economies such as India. This paper studies the net environmental impact of energy supply to such datacentres, at four candidate locations, by examining their net Green House Gas Emissions per kWh and land usage per kW. The study analyses various sources of energy such as thermal, wind, and solar plus battery systems to provide a comprehensive view of environmental impacts caused by the power supply.