EUROPE
Founded by the Smedvig family , a group well-renowned in Norway since 1915 , Green Mountain – an exceptionally sustainable co-location data centre business – is perfectly placed in the most prolific hydroelectric hub around . The Smedvig family had spent decades in the oil and gas industry , even implementing the first Norwegian-owned oil rig in the North Sea , before exiting that market in 2006 , and buying a great deal of property with which to make smart investments . One such investment was Green Mountain .
Tor Kristian Gyland has around 25 years of experience in the industry and joined the Green Mountain team in 2010 , a year after its inception . Within his former Chief Operating Officer role , Gyland was focused on operational and technical responsibilities , as well as establishing the two data centre sites Green Mountain currently operates . Now , he has taken the helm as Chief Executive Officer , and leads the business in its drive to be the greenest data centre business in the world .
Thanks to investor faith in the Smedvig family to make the right decisions , Green Mountain found its feet quickly , and is now a major player in the local and international data centre market . “ Norway is in a unique position thanks to the amount of hydro power being produced ,” says Gyland . “ A lot of countries in Europe are quite envious of that , and it was one of the reasons behind the decision for the Smedvig family to invest in a data centre in Norway . They were following that industry , and saw that Norway had a unique potential to take a huge part of the co-location market .”
Sustainability was a vital ingredient for this project . “ The first data centre location we were able to get hold of close to Stavanger , was a former NATO ammunition storage facility inside a mountain and has a fjord next to it that enables natural cooling . The goal was then to build the greenest data centre in the world , and we are certainly a market leader for that . We are setting the green standard .”
While using hydroelectric energy and cold water for cooling is nothing new in Norway , Green Mountain has
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