atNorth has finalised an agreement with Vestforbrænding, Denmark’s largest waste-to-energy company, to channel excess heat from its DEN01 data centre campus into Vestforbrænding’s district heating network. Located in Ballerup, Greater Copenhagen, the 22.5MW metro site is set to become operational in Q1 2026. The partnership will allow the district heating network to utilise warm water, a byproduct of energy-efficient Direct Liquid Cooling technology, to heat over 8,000 homes in the region by 2028. This initiative will reduce the energy needed for local central heating, thus lowering the carbon footprint for both atNorth and Vestforbrænding.
Denmark, a pioneer in decarbonisation, has set a target to achieve net zero by 2045, with a 110% reduction in emissions by 2050. The Danish government is actively phasing out coal in the district heating sector and supports heat recycling initiatives that align with circular economy principles. atNorth’s collaboration with Vestforbrænding is integral to its commitment to environmentally responsible operations and forms a core part of its data centre blueprint, which emphasises sustainable construction, energy efficiency, and community engagement.
Vestforbrænding, with extensive experience in district heating, is currently executing an ambitious District Heating Plan for 2030, phasing out oil and gas boilers in thousands of households and expanding the network to integrate future energy sources, including surplus heat from data centres. Steen Neuchs Vedel, CEO of Vestforbrænding, remarked, “For many years, we have talked about surplus heat from data centres being part of the future. Now the future is here. With today’s contract signing, we are showing the way forward for how surplus heat from data centres can reach people’s homes.”
Eyjólfur Magnús Kristinsson, CEO of atNorth, highlighted the importance of responsible scaling in response to the increasing demand for AI-ready digital infrastructure. “By actively seeking heat reuse partnerships for our data centres, we can mitigate our environmental impact, benefit the communities in which we operate, and help clients decarbonise their IT workloads,” he stated.
This announcement follows other initiatives by atNorth, including a collaboration with Wa3rm to reuse excess heat for growing vegetables near its DEN02 data centre, and an agreement with Kesko Corporation in Finland to recycle waste heat from atNorth’s FIN02 data centre to heat a neighbouring store.
