Building International Networks Among Research, Policy, and Practice

Borderstep at U.S. Expert Exchange on Data Centers

Dr. Severin Beucker of the Borderstep Institute has been invited by the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (Konrad Adenauer Foundation) to join an expert exchange in Northern Virginia. The visit is part of an ongoing dialogue between experts from Virginia and Germany, following an initial exchange in September 2025.

Growing demand for computing power and the rapid expansion of AI are driving investment in data centers and other digital infrastructure. For regions with large concentrations of data centers, this creates new opportunities for economic development. At the same time, it poses growing challenges for energy supply, electricity grids, workforce development, and local planning.

Data Centers and Regional Development

The expert exchange examines how demand for data centers and digital infrastructure is shaping regional economies. It also explores what these developments mean for innovation, research, and technology policy. Discussions will address the role of data centers in the digital economy as well as the skills and workforce needed to support their continued growth.

Managing Energy Demand and Grid Integration

A key focus is the growing energy demand associated with data centers and AI. Large data centers can require grid connections of several hundred megawatts, creating significant challenges for electricity infrastructure and regional planning.

The experts will discuss how the continued growth of data centers can be supported by renewable energy and how waste heat can be put to productive use. They will also examine how energy and environmental policy can respond to the expansion of digital infrastructure

Borderstep contributes its research expertise on the energy and resource requirements of data centers, waste heat utilization and grid integration. The exchange also provides an opportunity to place these issues in the broader context of AI, regional economic development and technology policy.

A Long-Standing Exchange Between Virginia and Germany

Dr. Dale Medearis of the Northern Virginia Regional Commission has been a key driver of the expert exchange. Borderstep and Dr. Dale Medearis have been discussing data center development and its implications for many years. He has previously accompanied several expert delegations to Germany.

The exchange will continue in November, when another delegation from Virginia visits Berlin and Frankfurt. Meetings are planned with Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE), transmission system operator 50Hertz and the Borderstep Institute. The delegation will focus in particular on Germany’s experience and current approaches to data center waste heat utilization and grid integration.

Transatlantic Perspectives on Sustainable Digital Growth

The ongoing dialogue brings together perspectives from Northern Virginia and Germany on a question that is becoming increasingly relevant on both sides of the Atlantic: How can the growth of AI and digital infrastructure contribute to economic development while meeting the requirements of energy systems, environmental policy and regional planning?

For more than a decade, Borderstep has been conducting research on the resource-efficient use of digital products and services. Its work covers all aspects of this field, which is often referred to as Green IT. On the one hand, the term describes ICT products whose manufacturing, operation, and end-of-life management require less energy and fewer resources (“Green in IT”). On the other hand, and of even greater significance, it refers to digital solutions that help reduce resource consumption across all sectors of the economy and areas of everyday life (“Green through IT”).

Data centers are a core component of digital infrastructure. Since 2007, the Borderstep Institute has been analyzing the electricity consumption of data centers in Germany and across Europe. This work is based on a proprietary structural model that has been regularly updated since 2010.

The model provides a detailed representation of data centers by size, technology, and operating model. It includes cloud, edge, and traditional data centers. It also takes into account different server types, age structures, and building technologies such as cooling and power supply systems. This enables Borderstep to provide robust data and scenarios on the development and sustainability of digital infrastructures.

Through projects such as TEMPRO, DC2HEAT, DCESS, and EUDCEAR, the Borderstep Institute develops solutions to support climate-friendly and energy-efficient digitisation.

View all current projects in the Digitisation & Green IT research area.

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