UK Energy from Waste (EfW) firm Viridor Energy has partnered with Rivington Energy to develop a portfolio of data centers powered by Viridor’s EfW sites in the UK.

Under the terms of the deal, Rivington Energy will develop up to 200MW of AI-ready data center capacity at sites in Bristol, Greater London, Oxfordshire, and Fife.

Its first project, set to be located in Avonmouth, Bristol, was recently submitted to the local council for planning consideration. The Avonmouth data center is expected to have a capacity of 40MW and house high-density racks of up to 144kW, which the companies claim will support AI workloads. If planning approval is secured, the facility is slated for operations sometime in 2027.

“Our partnership with Viridor represents an important step towards closing this gap. By sourcing power directly from Viridor’s Energy from Waste facilities rather than the grid, we can access a reliable long-term power supply while making productive use of energy generated from residual waste that would otherwise not be recycled. This helps improve cost competitiveness while maintaining operational flexibility,” Andrew Newman, director at Rivington Energy.

“Our partnership with Rivington Energy reflects Viridor’s strategy to maximize the long-term value of our Energy from Waste assets. Co-locating data centers at our sites creates an opportunity to provide reliable, long-term power directly to critical digital infrastructure, while making effective use of the energy generated through our operations,” added Pierre Dorel, managing director at Viridor Energy.

Viridor operates the largest EfW fleet in the UK, with 12 operational facilities across the UK. According to the company, the plants generate more than 2,100GWh of baseload electricity each year.

Rivington is a London-based sustainable energy specialist that develops, manages, and delivers renewable energy infrastructure projects across the UK. Via its development arm, Renewable Connections, it has developed more than 1GW of solar and battery storage projects. In May, the firm announced plans for a data center campus in Lincolnshire, co-located with a solar farm

EfW plants are modern incinerator facilities that burn non-recyclable household and commercial waste at high temperatures to generate electricity and heat. While often described as green energy, the plants emit high levels of CO2 and nitrogen oxides. Emissions are mitigated through advanced filtration that captures most pollutants. Proponents argue that while the plants are polluting, they are less so than resorting to landfill.

Several data center and telco operators have looked to EfW as a potential energy source for their facilities. In the UK, Ark Data Centres became one of the first to sign a supply deal with an EfW plant, hooking itself up via a direct wire to London Energy’s Edmonton EfW EcoPark. DCD toured the EfW facility and adjacent data center last year.