CyrusOne & E.ON partner on 61MW new power system in Germany

CyrusOne and E.ON have entered into a strategic partnership to enhance power and cooling infrastructure for data centre customers in Europe, beginning with a new on-site power generation system at CyrusOne's FRA7 data centre in Griesheim, Germany.

The collaboration will see E.ON design and implement a bespoke power generation system capable of delivering an additional 61 megawatts of electricity directly to the FRA7 facility by 2029. This initiative will bring the total IT capacity of the FRA7 campus to 126 megawatts, with provisions in place for the system to be operational by the fourth quarter of 2028.

The FRA7 power plant is set to operate through a combustion process producing both electricity and heat, and is engineered to be adaptable to future energy technologies. Upon commissioning, the facility will use up to 25% hydrogen blended in the fuel mix, with plans to graduate towards full hydrogen operation as project conditions permit.

Matthew Pullen, Executive Vice President and Managing Director, Europe at CyrusOne, said, "We are thrilled to announce this Partnership with E.ON to provide customers with a runway to large scale growth without utility risk by 2029. By leveraging the complementary expertise of both companies to scale innovative technologies, we are creating a unique opportunity to offer growth capacity for customers in their most important markets. Our scalable platform will set new industry standards for the integration of advanced energy solutions, offering a replicable model for future data centers and setting the pace for European innovation in sustainable infrastructure."

The agreement is described as an industry first, with both companies planning to elaborate on a range of projects beyond the Griesheim location. The partnership framework will also address grid support, power purchase agreements, and heat management, targeting improvements in availability zones where access to power supplies is limited or delayed by existing grid constraints.

Marten Bunnemann, CEO at E.ON Energy Infrastructure Solutions, commented, "This Partnership brings together two industry-leading companies to accelerate a sustainable digital future, developing solutions that provide both power and cooling to the data center and heat to the campus. What sets this Partnership apart is its strategic depth: a long-term alliance built on shared vision, technical integration, and real benefits for customers and the wider community."

The FRA7 data centre is a key part of the FRANKFURT WESTSIDE campus, a 73-hectare mixed-use commercial and industrial site managed by BEOS AG and Swiss Life Asset Managers. CyrusOne was previously chosen to deliver a solution that meets strict sustainability requirements for the site, including the potential to deploy up to 40 megawatts of waste heat to the campus' heating network at full capacity.

The forthcoming power generation system will introduce absorption chillers to convert exhaust heat from the power process into cooling capabilities for the data centre, improving the overall efficiency of the site and helping to reduce power consumption. The approach is also expected to significantly enhance the Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) metric at FRA7.

E.ON's system will generate power, cooling, and heat using the combustion process and qualifies CyrusOne to receive green certificates of origin. These certificates support the carbon neutrality goals of its customers. The plant is initially planned to run on natural gas but is engineered to blend in hydrogen as fuel demand and supply allow, with upgrades facilitating a move to 100% hydrogen where feasible.

The technology is also designed to improve the quality and application of waste heat by utilising heat from the absorption chiller, raising the output temperature by about 10°C to support the site's heating network needs.

The combination of on-site generation, waste heat utilisation, and readiness for hydrogen integration is intended to strengthen local energy resilience, infrastructure reliability, and regulatory compliance while supporting the sustainability strategies of companies operating in the region.