SINGAPORE — Keppel Data Centers Holding Pte Ltd signed separate memorandums of understanding with Toll Group and Royal Vopak to study the feasibility of developing a floating data center park (FDCP) and LNG-to-power infrastructure in Singapore.

Keppel will explore the development of a near-shore FDCP at the Loyang Offshore Supply Base, which is operated by Toll Group.

In addition, Keppel Data Centers, together with Royal Vopak, will conduct a feasibility study and assess the commercial viability of establishing liquid natural gas (LNG) and possibly hydrogen infrastructure for the power and cooling plants, which will form part of the FDCP development. The exploration of hydrogen infrastructure is part of Keppel Data Centers’ strategy to work toward the decarbonization of its operations.

With the growing global demand for data centers, Keppel’s FDCP concept is an environmentally friendly and resource-efficient way to meet the expanding needs of the digital economy. Data centers consume significant amounts of energy for cooling purposes, especially in the tropics. A floating data center utilizes seawater for cooling, allowing it to be more energy efficient than conventional land-based data centers. It also avoids the use of potable or industrial water in cooling towers, which typically results in significant water loss through evaporation. In addition, FDCPs free up valuable land for other urban uses, making it a particularly attractive proposition for land-scarce cities.

“We are pleased to have strong partners, such as Toll Group and Royal Vopak, join us in exploring the feasibility of establishing a FDCP and its adjacent infrastructure,” said Wong Wai Meng, CEO, Keppel Data Centers. “We are also pleased to harness the diverse capabilities of the Keppel Group to explore the development of FDCPs as part of our suite of solutions for sustainable urbanization. We see great potential in FDCPs as a commercially viable and attractive innovation that conserves land, water, and energy compared to traditional land-based data centers. Our FDCP concept will feature a modular design, which can be scaled up quickly according to customers’ demand. Fabrication of floating data centers can be done quickly and cost-effectively in controlled environments, such as Keppel Offshore & Marine’s yards, and deployed in a ‘plug-and-play’ manner. This greatly reduces the construction-related carbon footprint of data centers, as well as the development costs and speed to market. Given the modular design, new floating data center modules can be readily developed and deployed to replace the older ones, while the older floating data center modules can be recycled for deployment in other locations, thus contributing to the circular economy.”

“We’re excited about partnering with Keppel Data Centers to explore a sustainable innovative solution for data center development,” said Sam Eid, executive vice president of global logistics, Toll Group. “Our primary focus for the base remains to support the oil, gas, industrial, and marine industries. This initiative will allow Toll Group to take a significant role to improve space productivity and sustainability in Singapore whilst driving our primary focus.”

“Our collaboration with Keppel Data Centers will allow us to leverage our global expertise and experience to develop resilient and efficient LNG infrastructure for power generation to feed the data center development in Singapore,” said Kees van Seventer, president, Vopak. “The partnership will also enable us to study the technical and commercial viability of hydrogen and its required infrastructure for power generation. With our presence of 37 years in Singapore, we are committed to grow our footprint with sustainable infrastructure solutions.”