Nordic data center developer atNorth has partnered with sustainable infrastructure firm Selected Group on a heat reuse project at its DEN02 data center campus in Ølgod, Denmark.

The deal will see surplus heat from the data center be delivered to Selected Group’s planned large-scale greenhouse development, expected to be located near the data center.

The heat reuse project is expected to scale in unison with the data center’s development, with the first phase slated for completion in Q3 2028. The greenhouses will be built on land adjacent to the data center to create, the partners claim, a long-term, integrated ecosystem between digital infrastructure and local agriculture.

“This partnership demonstrates exactly what responsible digital infrastructure should look like,” said Eyjólfur Magnús Kristinsson, CEO atNorth. “By collaborating with forward‑thinking organizations like Selected Group, we can transform surplus heat into a valuable resource that supports local food production, reduces carbon emissions and strengthens community resilience. DEN02 is designed to integrate into Ølgod community, and this project exemplifies this.”

Peter Nielsen, CEO of Selected Group, added: “Every unit of surplus heat should create value. By partnering with atNorth to convert surplus heat into local food production, we are demonstrating how digital infrastructure can strengthen food security while reducing emissions. Reducing dependence on imported produce strengthens national food resilience, shortens supply chains, and removes the emissions associated with transporting fresh produce across borders. We believe this model can be replicated wherever large-scale data centers are built.”

News on the data center first surfaced in September 2024. Located in the city of Varde, the site will span 176 hectares and is expected to have a capacity of 250MW. The data center is expected to begin operations in a phased manner, with initial energization slated for late 2026, early 2027.

The data center will be atNorth’s second in Denmark to be signed up to a long-term heat reuse agreement. Last year, the company finalized an agreement with Vestforbrænding, Denmark’s largest waste-to-energy company, to supply excess heat from its DEN01 data center campus in Copenhagen to the local district heating network.

Before this, the company signed a heat-reuse agreement with Kesko Corporation, a Finnish retail conglomerate.

AtNorth was formed as Advania Data Centers in 2012 from three components: Skyrr, a public sector IT specialist in Iceland; Kerfi, a Swedish outfit with roots in a Nokia spin-off called Datapoint, and Hands from Norway. The company was recently acquired by Equinix and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP) in a $4.2 billion deal.

It currently operates seven data centers across Sweden, Iceland, and Finland, with more in development in Finland, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway. Most recently, it announced plans for a 350MW facility in Haugaland, Norway.

Based in Denmark, Selected is an alternative investment management company that develops projects across the Nordic region.