Science & Tech · Big Tech & Internet · 10 hrs ago
Expert says Arctic data centers could cut costs and improve security
Russian expert Alexey Fadeev says data centers could be built in the Arctic to take advantage of the region's conditions.
Data centers use large amounts of electricity, and cooling accounts for about half of their operating costs.
Arctic cold could reduce the need for powerful cooling equipment, while local electricity sources could help keep costs down.
Rocky terrain may also make data center infrastructure harder to attack, an issue raised after attacks on major Russian technology companies' data centers in October.
Russia's president signed a decree requiring private data centers to reserve 10% of their capacity for key domestic information resources.
Arctic facilities could support digital security and sovereignty, while also helping connect remote communities and support services such as telemedicine and Northern Sea Route safety.
Arctic data centers could have lower cooling costs because of low temperatures and access to cheap electricity, expert Alexey Fadeev told TASS.
Fadeev said the region’s rocky terrain could also make data center infrastructure harder to attack.
He said Arctic facilities could support digital sovereignty by connecting remote areas and helping provide services such as telemedicine and fast internet.
His comments followed attacks on data centers belonging to Yandex, VK and Sberbank in October.
On November 2, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree requiring private data centers to reserve 10% of their capacity for important domestic information resources.
- Who
- Alexey Fadeev, an economics expert and leader of the Expert Council on Arctic Development at the St. Petersburg Committee on Foreign Relations.
- What
- Fadeev said Arctic data centers could reduce costs and improve security. He also described potential benefits for digital sovereignty and remote services.
- When
- November 9, 2026. The article also refers to attacks in October and a decree signed on November 2.
- Where
- Russia’s Arctic regions.
- Why
- Low temperatures could reduce cooling costs, and cheap electricity could help power facilities. Fadeev also said rocky terrain could hinder attacks.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Data centers belonging to Yandex, VK and Sberbank were attacked.
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree requiring private data centers to reserve 10% of their capacity for important domestic information resources.
Alexey Fadeev told TASS that Arctic data centers could offer cost and security advantages.
- Expert
- Alexey Fadeev
- Cooling costs
- About half of data centers’ operating costs
- Capacity reserve
- 10% for important domestic information resources
- Power source
- Kola Nuclear Power Plant in Murmansk Region
- Other energy options
- Wind power, hydropower and a floating nuclear power plant operating in Chukotka
What people are saying
The deploying of Russian data processing centers in the Arctic has its advantages, including natural ones, such as low temperatures and cheap electricity, and the recent events, related to attacks on infrastructures of our IT giants, make us take a fresh look at the situation with digital sovereignty and digital security.
In the Arctic, part of this issue is solved naturally due to the low annual average temperatures, simply by passing cold air through the data center sections.
The terrain is quite complex and it is a natural protection, that is, it is quite difficult to hit, say, with some unmanned aircraft any data processing centers that are hidden in rocks, and this is another factor of the Arctic's advantage.