Data centres
The ever-increasing digitalisation of society has also permanently increased the demand for data centres. Cloud services, IoT and AI applications have become an integral part of everyday life. Reliability is essential for the digital infrastructure. More and more data centres are therefore also being built in Germany.
The construction of a data centre requires a complex planning process. In a feasibility study, the basic site requirements, such as location, plot size and power supply, must be examined. This is followed by an examination of the legal planning requirements.
In addition to the building permit procedure for the actual data centre building and the ancillary facilities, the mandatory emergency power supply for the data centre requires special attention. In order to reduce the possible system failure of a data centre to a minimum, the power supply to the data halls is ensured by emergency power supply systems in the event of a power failure. So-called emergency diesel engine systems (NDMA) are used. For these diesel generators, a permit is required in accordance with the Federal Immission Control Act (BImSchG) for rated thermal input of 50 MW or more, whereby the capacity of all generators at the site is added together.
In an application procedure in accordance with the Federal Immission Control Act (BImSchG), it must be demonstrated that harmful environmental impacts from emissions to air, water and soil are avoided and reduced, taking waste management into account. In order to avoid time-consuming conflicts in the application process, the application documents must be very well prepared. The entire plant design and all expert reports must be coordinated in such a way that additional requirements from the approval authority are minimised. Public participation in the approval process is a particular challenge.
Hintzen Umweltberatung supports you in the realisation of your project and accompanies the approval process for your data centre in accordance with BImSchG. We have already successfully managed the approval procedures for over 12 data centres throughout Germany and have also provided consulting services for other locations with existing data centres.
In addition to supporting the entire process, from application preparation to application procedures, our services also include support during the construction phase, commissioning and final inspection of the fully equipped data center by the authorities.
Services
- Feasibility study
- Coordination of specialist planners and experts
- Contact the authorities
- Application management
- Scoping or application conference
- Preparation of the application documents
- Support during the approval process
- Conducting the public hearing for procedures with public participation
- Examination of the permit
- Support in implementing the ancillary provisions
- Participation in the final inspection
- Immission control consulting for existing locations