Netherlands enforces efficiency mandates

The Netherlands has begun enforcing the energy savings obligation’s (ESO’s) data center requirements, notifying operators that they must take immediate action to meet the mandate to maintain the IT space supply air temperatures at 27^oC (80.6^oF). This requirement is particularly challenging for enterprise operators or colocation operators with multiple tenants that have heterogeneous equipment inventories with varied operating temperature maximums.

The Netherlands’ ESO requires that data center operators evaluate and implement 12 designated energy efficiency measures where they are technically feasible, and have a payback period of five years or less (Table 1). The ESO requires that energy users report their conformance with implementing the required energy efficiency measures once every four years. The first report on energy saving should have been submitted in December 2023 and needs to include the following information: