Simplex Software & Internet Services Ltd., a member of the Limassol Chamber of Commerce & Industry, has recently joined the Climate Neutral Data Centre Pact (CNDCP), a European initiative for climate neutral data centres. On the occasion, the company’s Managing Director Michael Omerou spoke to ‘’Entrepreneurial Limassol’’ .

Simplex has recently become a member of the CNDCP European initiative on Climate Neutral Data Centers. What prompted you to join the pact and what specific obligations do you undertake with your participation?

Our company has always been sensitive to environmental and sustainability issues. As a leading data center service provider in Cyprus and the only independent (carrier neutral) provider that operates two privately owned data centers in our country, we considered it our duty to sign this European Treaty, through which together with other leading data center service providers , including giants such as Microsoft, Google and Amazon, we undertake the commitment for climate-neutral operation of our data centers by 2030, so that this sector can contribute to the European Green Deal, which aims to make Europe the first climate neutral continent by the year 2050.

Through the treaty, we undertake to achieve very specific and measurable goals regarding the energy efficiency of our data centers, which should operate with a maximum energy efficiency index (PUE - Power Usage Effectiveness) 1.4, the use of electricity from renewable or other 75% clean energy sources by 2025 and 100% by 2030, the reuse or recycling of old equipment, the protection of water resources (water being the main source of cooling in data centers), as well as the reuse of heat produced. Competent bodies will review the progress in relation to the objectives set twice a year, while all participants will have to comply with the objectives of the Treaty and be certified by July 1, 2023. Thereafter compliance will be evaluated and re-certified every four years.

How important do you think the role of data centers can be in achieving the broader goal of a climate-neutral Europe by 2050?

Although the data center sector is not very developed in our country, it is one of the most energy-intensive sectors of the global and European economy, consuming more than 1% of global energy production, a number that reaches or exceeds the energy consumption even of certain heavy industry sectors. The positive thing is that despite the development of the sector in recent years, consumption has remained little changed and this is because the equipment used in data centers is becoming more efficient. It is renewed every 3-5 years and new equipment replacing the old is significantly more efficient and less energy consuming. Therefore, the development of the sector and the use of more equipment, has not "translated" into more energy consumption by data centers so far.

Data centers are the pillar of the 4th industrial revolution and as it has been proven by the pandemic we are experiencing in the last year, they constitute basic infrastructure not only for the digital economy, but for the whole economy. The speeding up of the digital transformation of companies due to the pandemic has increased demand for data center and cloud services, while the demand is expected to increase even more in the coming years with the widespread adoption of 5G, IoT, and other technologies. Therefore, the regulation of the operation of data centers through the CNDCP agreement, but also in general the adoption of ecological technologies and practices by companies in the sector, is important and will contribute proportionally to achieving the goal set through the European Green Deal for a climate neutral Europe by 2050.

How do you generally position yourself as a company on issues related to green and sustainable development?

We operate two data centers in a country where the weather conditions, due to the high temperatures that prevail, are not exactly favorable.

Even so, even before our accession to the CNDCP, we have undertaken a series of actions and investments that have significantly improved the energy efficiency of our first data center, LIM1, which was the first independent (carrier neutral) data center in Cyprus and operates since 2007, so that it is currently within the energy efficiency boundaries /targets provided for under CNDCP.  Our new data center, LCA1, opened only last December, is the largest in Cyprus and one of the most technologically advanced in the Eastern Mediterranean region. In this we have adopted modern and ecological UPS and cooling solutions, adapted to the data of our country, which offer the maximum possible efficiency with the lowest possible pollution.

In a world where digital infrastructure and connectivity are more critical and important than ever, at Simplex we make no compromises on the environment and remain committed to green and sustainable development.