Summary
- KevlinX BRU01's first phase is forecast to consume around 140 GWh of electricity annually.
- Estimated water consumption is 140,000 cubic metres annually, with a further 16 MW IT phase planned from 2028 at the earliest.
- Environmental permit conditions require provision for recovering at least 75% of the facility's waste heat, although delivery into a heating network is not yet established.
The first 16 MW IT phase of KevlinX‘s BRU01 data centre in Brussels is forecast to consume approximately 140 GWh of electricity and 140,000 cubic metres of water annually, according to estimates disclosed by the regional government.
The electricity figure represents roughly 3% of the Brussels-Capital Region’s annual consumption. It was provided in a parliamentary response dated 19 October and reported publicly on 26 October as questions continued over how much additional data centre demand the region can accommodate.
BRU01 is located in Neder-Over-Heembeek and has been developed for high-density computing. Its first phase is designed for 16 MW of IT capacity, with another 16 MW planned in a second phase that is not expected before 2028.
The estimates do not establish that a fully occupied data centre is currently consuming electricity and water at those rates. Local reporting describes the first phase as approaching commissioning or service commencement, while earlier operator statements referred to completed infrastructure and initial fitted-out capacity.
Brussels parliamentarian Lotte Stoops requested information about resource requirements from state secretary Audrey Henry. The resulting response disclosed projected electricity and water consumption together with estimates of the facility’s operating efficiency.
Henry reported power usage effectiveness below 1.2 and water usage effectiveness below one for the first phase. Both are efficiency indicators, rather than measurements of the total resources required by a completed facility over a particular year.
Power usage effectiveness compares total facility energy consumption with the electricity used by IT equipment. It helps describe the additional energy required for cooling, electrical conversion, and supporting infrastructure.
A relatively low PUE can coexist with considerable absolute electricity demand. If computing equipment operates at substantial scale, the electricity required by the equipment itself remains large even where supporting systems have been designed efficiently.
Water usage effectiveness provides another operating measure, relating water consumption to IT energy use. Its interpretation depends on the water accounting boundaries, the cooling system, and the conditions under which the installation operates.
Regional infrastructure planning must account for those absolute requirements. Data centres connect to electricity networks shared with businesses, households, public services, and other users, while cooling systems may rely on water resources that are also subject to competing demand.
Stoops has argued that Brussels needs a clearer framework for deciding how much data centre capacity it can support and what network investment would be required.
Waste heat recovery is another element of the development. KevlinX has entered into a protocol agreement with Brussels distribution system operator Sibelga concerning possible future connection to a heating network.
Henry said the environmental permit requires the installations to be designed so that at least 75% of their waste heat can be recovered, with sufficient space reserved for the associated equipment.
Recoverable heat is not equivalent to useful heat already delivered to customers. A functioning scheme needs an appropriate distribution network, compatible thermal conditions, receiving buildings, and operational arrangements that match the available heat with demand.
Other questions concern water sources, cooling substances, and how environmental commitments would be monitored over the operating life of the facility.
KevlinX is not the only prospective development in the region. Ark Data Centres has also been associated with plans for another Brussels facility of comparable size, although its precise location has not been disclosed in the reporting.
The additional capacity under consideration strengthens the case for assessing cumulative electricity and water requirements rather than treating each proposed installation solely as an isolated planning application.
Brussels now has published estimates for BRU01’s first phase. Actual consumption, the commissioning timetable, the second phase, and any delivered heat recovery will determine how closely the operating facility follows those assumptions.
