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By Tarmo Virki, European Technology Corresp
December 1, 2011 12:28 PM EST
Ireland and Iceland are seeking to fuel their hard-hit economies and exploit their position on the western edge of Europe with new data centers to be connected via a new, $300 million transatlantic telecoms cable by 2013.
Demand for remote data centers is increasing, boosted by the rising trend of so-called cloud computing, where information is stored and processed at massive remote data centers.
Ireland wants to establish itself as a global hub for cloud computing. Its temperate climate suits the centers, which require huge amounts of power to run and to prevent from overheating.
Iceland, located between North America and Northern Europe, and recovering from its own economic crisis, hopes the new, larger cable will help it to benefit from its renewable hydro and geothermal energy resources for data centers.
Google is building a data center in Dublin and Microsoft already has one in the city.
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The centers would bring much-needed investments and new jobs to the country which fell to a severe recession after a property crash and bank sector meltdown.
It has won international plaudits for meeting its goals under an 85 billion euro EU-IMF bailout but needs its domestic economy to start growing again if it is to convince investors that its debt burden is sustainable.
FINANCING, DEMAND?
U.S.-based startup Emerald Networks Inc on Thursday joined a race to build the first new transatlantic telecommunication cable since 2003, linking Ireland and Iceland to North America.
Two other transatlantic projects, Hibernian Express and Wasace, are also in the works, but using different routes.
The company has raised the first $5 million from the Welcome Trust, and has appointed investment banking firm Jefferies & Company Inc to complete the $300 million fundraising.
"We are very confident that in the current economy we are going to make it," Ray Sembler, CEO of Emerald Networks, told Reuters in an interview.
Emerald seeks to raise $20 million to $25 million of equity this year, which would be enough to start the project, Sembler said, while in first half of 2012 it aims to raise at first some $100 million more in equity and then $150 million in debt.
It has picked a unit of U.S. firm Tyco to supply the cable and install it.
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