Eco-friendly data centre hopes to create jobs

By Andrew Bolger
Published: February 28 2009 03:07

Alchemy Plus, an information technology company, recently announced plans for a £20m ($26m) eco-friendly data centre in Inverness that could eventually create more than 400 jobs.
The group said it would utilise the advantages of the colder northern Scotland climate and the Highlands’ abundance of renewable energy from hydro-electric and wind power schemes.

It intends to transmit waste heat from the planned facility to neighbouring parts of the Inverness Harbour development, including retail units, offices and a large hotel – making it one of the most energy efficient to be built.
Under a “cloud computing” model, which involves IT resources being accessed via the internet, users are charged for the resources their business uses. Alchemy Plus says an expanded pilot project over the past 18 months delivered an average cost saving of 28 per cent to users, and ongoing development work is set to unlock even greater savings.
Peter Swanson, Alchemy Plus chairman, said: “All the major players see this as the future of IT delivery and I’m delighted that we in the Highlands are leading the way for the rest of the UK. We want to construct an iconic landmark building for the city that will act as a beacon for others.”
By offering high-performance computing resources on demand, with full disaster recovery facilities, Alchemy Plus believes its facility will become a hub that attracts other innovative companies.
The company plans to use the computing facility as a resource centre to underpin the delivery of outsourced services to businesses across the UK. By allowing workers from throughout the Highlands to access its system to perform outsourced shared services, the group said full- or part-time employment would be created for micro businesses and individuals across the region.
Stewart Nicol, chief executive of Inverness Chamber of Commerce, said: “This project will really put the city on the map for developments in information technology.
“This is a field in which Inverness and the Highlands can excel and we need to take full advantage of the opportunities it offers.”
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2009