Rolls-Royce collaborates with INERATEC to furnish data centers with electric fuel generated from renewable energy sources.
In a groundbreaking move, INERATEC and Rolls-Royce have joined forces to create a more sustainable future for data centers. Maximilian Backhaus, Chief Commercial Officer at INERATEC, announced that their e-fuels offer a scalable, dependable, and immediately deployable climate-neutral solution for AI-powered data centers.
This partnership aims to expand the rollout of this solution internationally over time, advancing efforts to decarbonize energy-intensive digital infrastructure. The initial target for the partnership is data centers in Germany, leveraging short delivery routes from INERATEC's ERA ONE production facility in Frankfurt.
The integration is expected to result in a more cost-effective and CO2-neutral solution for data centers, particularly those classified as critical infrastructure. Rolls-Royce’s mtu-branded emergency generators are already approved for operation with sustainable fuels, facilitating rapid integration of e-fuels without major modifications or performance loss.
INERATEC, founded in 2016, produces sustainable e-fuels and synthetic chemicals. These applications use hydrogen from renewable electricity and greenhouse gases such as CO2 to produce fuels and chemicals. The fuels meet international environmental standards like ISCC, ensuring sustainability credentials.
The collaboration is not limited to Germany and plans to expand internationally. By replacing fossil diesel with synthetic e-fuels, the partnership offers a scalable, dependable CO2-neutral solution that helps critical systems reduce their environmental impact while ensuring uninterrupted operation in power outages.
This initiative will use INERATEC's synthetic e-diesel as a sustainable alternative for emergency generators. Last year, INERATEC raised over $129 million in its Series B funding round, with the proceeds to be used to scale production of the company's sustainable e-fuels.
In summary, the INERATEC and Rolls-Royce e-fuel partnership enhances the sustainability of data center backup power by enabling the use of renewable, synthetic fuels that cut carbon emissions without compromising generator reliability, thus reducing the carbon footprint of vital digital infrastructure. This collaboration addresses one of digital infrastructure’s major challenges: reliable, clean backup power that lowers overall emissions.
[1] INERATEC Press Release, "INERATEC and Rolls-Royce Partner to Make Data Centers More Sustainable," [Date], [Link] [2] INERATEC Website, "About Us," [Date], [Link] [3] Rolls-Royce Press Release, "Rolls-Royce and INERATEC Announce Strategic Partnership to Decarbonize Backup Power Systems for Data Centers," [Date], [Link] [4] INERATEC Website, "Sustainability," [Date], [Link] [5] INERATEC Website, "Products," [Date], [Link]
The INERATEC and Rolls-Royce partnership aims to leverage technology to develop a scalable, CO2-neutral solution for data centers, integrating renewable e-fuels into digital infrastructure. This collaboration bridges the environmental-science sector with the finance industry, as INERATEC recently secured $129 million in funding to expand the production of their sustainable e-fuels.
This innovative move in the industry also incorporates Rolls-Royce’s mtu-branded generators, making them compatible with sustainable e-fuels, thus further inciting environmental stewardship in the energy-intensive technology sector.
