SolisIDC (CEO Son Jeong-hyeon) is getting attention from the IT industry as it plans to build a hyperscale data center (SolisIDC) in Naepo New City in the province of Chungcheongnam-do. South Korean and foreign industries have been making progress recently through artificial intelligence (AI), big data, and IoT (Internet of Things). Hyperscale data center is seen as a facility that is able to effectively manage servers with large capacities.
According to the industry on Tuesday, SolisIDC received inquiries from four major financial companies and two tech companies regarding the data center’s wattage per rack. This is because the data center is equipped with 40 kW of energy per rack and temperature control system and air conditioning system that are necessary to conduct studies on cutting-edge technologies. No data center in the world currently provides amount of energy greater than 20 kW.
SolisIDC will be seven stories high with three basement levels and cover about 72,000 m2 and it will be able to accommodate about 100,000 servers. Because it will supply 154V 120 MW of electricity, it is able to manage servers and power without any setback. It will be equipped with an automatic cooling system that will prevent servers from overheating and it will also be equipped with a backup power system for a possible power outage. SolisIDC also plans to obtain a “tier III” certification from a global data center evaluation agency called Uptime. A tier III certification is only given to a data center that does not require a shutdown when maintenance is needed.
SolisIDC plans to break the ground in the first half this year and plans to complete the construction so that it can begin providing its service in 2023. It is currently working on routing 154 kV of electricity that will be supplied from a nearby Hongseong Substation. To do so, a high-voltage gas insulated switchgear (GIS) and three transformers within the facility. Two transformers will be the main power system while the third one will be the backup power system.
“When we first started working on the facility’s design, some wondered if there would be demands for a hyperscale data center.” said one official from SolisIDC. “However, we decided to be the first to provide high-power service as industries continue to expand their studies on AI and increase their usage of servers with high-performance GPUs.” This official also added that the company will put in necessary efforts to provide a stable data center service to companies that work on deep learning, big data analysis, and AI.
According to a “2020 report on the data center industry” conducted by the Korea Data Center Council, the total size of South Korean commercial data centers will grow at an annual average of 15.9% and will be over 700 MW in 2025. This will push South Korea up to a second place in the field of data center in Asia after Japan. Based on last year’s standard, South Korea was ranked fourth after Japan, Singapore, and Hong Kong.
Staff Reporter Lim, Joongkwon | lim9181@etnews.com