Biggest in the Nordics

Hydro66 is expanding rapidly and has a fantastic 2018. During the year, four new data centers will be built in Boden. Here the location is the biggest asset.

Hydro66 is a colocation data center. This means that they provide data centers to many different customers because there are advantages to having it on a big scale.

– We do not have our own servers, but we assist with electricity, cooling, ventilation and security so that customers get the optimal conditions for their hardware, says Anne Graf, CEO of Hydro66.

And it’s going really well and fast. In 2018, the company will move from two to six data canters, the last of which will now open in October. They bought the land area in 2014 and the vision is 14 data centers with a capacity of up to 40 megawatts. At the turn of the year, they will be halfway to the finish line. In addition, they expect to increase sales from 15 to almost SEK 70 million this year.

– We are the fastest growing commercial data center in the Nordic region and most likely also the largest, so it has gone very, very fast, says Anne.

Within five years, she hopes that the facility will be fully developed and that more competitors will come here.
It was the big internet giants like Google and Facebook who first realized that they needed to find cheaper and more environmentally friendly electricity due to the rapid data growth in the world – the amount of data is doubling all the time. This applies to all companies that handle data.

– You need to use as little electricity as possible, the electricity you use must be green and it must have a low price. What has been our success is that we are the first commercial data center that has followed the same path as the internet giants.

The location is optimal

For Hydro66, Boden and this specific location, between the old A 8 and Bodsvedjan, is of great importance. Here is 100 percent green electricity from hydropower, cold air and just the right infrastructure. The fact that Boden’s energy and Vattenfall built the transformer station Älvbrinken right next door was decisive for the decision to build here.

– We usually call Boden the heart of the Nordic. Boden is a national hub for electricity and fiber, it is strategically located and there are good communications. In that way, Boden is unique and actually better than Luleå, says Anne.

She believes that space for this type of investment, locations close to the city and the amount of expertise are also important, but that neither Älvbrinken nor the data centers would have been built if it were not for Boden Business Agency and Node Pole who market the site.

Technical Manager Christian Keet from South Africa has designed the facility for this particular location. The dimensions and all technology in the building are based on weather data from Boden and the proximity to Älvbrinken.

A blockchain node

Anne sees the greatest potential for Hydro66 in, for example, the automotive industry, AI and 3D rendering, which need servers with high performance and a lot of electricity.

– Those who come to us are future-oriented companies that understand that the Internet’s environmental impact is an important issue for the future. There are greater CO2 emissions from the internet than from the aviation industry, says Anne.

Blockchain and cryptocurrencies are also part of the segment and Hydro66 has noticed an increased demand for the huge peak that bitcoin had at Christmas. Boden has an important place on the blockchain map and according to Anne, it is thanks to a collaboration between Boden Business Agency, KNC Miner, Hydro66 and more.

– Luleå has become synonymous with Facebook and Boden has become the blockchain and crypto site.

International market

The main facility is in Boden, but they also have offices in London, Luleå and Toronto. The company has been listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange since June 13.

As CEO, Anne works a lot with sales and customers and investor relations and travels a lot.

– For me personally, this is perfect. I get to run a business in the square, in my home, and travel and meet visionary people from all over the world. This is what I dreamed of 15 years ago. Then I am interested in things going well for Norrbotten. What we do here is a type of export that I think is important for Norrbotten.

Hydro66 employs 15 people and one of the most recent employees hired to cope with the capacity increase in Boden is the operations engineer Emil Fågelqvist.

– This feels like an industry of the future and it’s fun to be involved from the beginning, he says. #

Instagram: @ hydro66