Saft delivers Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) replacement for diesel-powered backup at Microsoft data center

• Large-scale project is showing how data centers can cut reliance on diesel fuel. 
• Saft delivered turnkey project for a battery energy storage system (BESS) that provides up to 80 minutes of backup power. 

Paris, October 04, 2023 – Saft, a subsidiary of TotalEnergies, has delivered a battery energy storage system (BESS) to replace diesel backup power generators at Microsoft’s sustainable data center in Sweden. The system entered operation in June 2023 as a key milestone on Microsoft’s path to diesel-free data centers by 2030.  

The new BESS results from a collaboration formed between TotalEnergies and Microsoft in March 2021 to drive towards Net Zero goals with opportunities for wider deployment.  

Until now, diesel generators have been essential for data center power continuity in the case of a grid outage. Running generators for backup and testing was an unavoidable source of greenhouse gas emissions. The new large-scale BESS overcomes this by providing 4 groups of 4 MWh each for up to 80 minutes of back up energy. 

Cedric Duclos, Saft’s CEO said: “TotalEnergies is proud to support Microsoft in its goal to reduce its emissions from data centers. The collaboration with Microsoft has allowed its affiliate Saft to deliver this system, which shows the huge potential for battery energy storage to decarbonize the digital industry.”  Saft deployed the BESS over 16 months following Microsoft’s approach to data center architecture. This focuses on safety and reliability by creating backup systems in groups that work independently to ensure a high level of redundancy.  As well as displacing the diesel generator, the BESS supports grid stability and provides black start capability to ensure rapid recovery of the power grid in the case of an outage. 

Eoin Doherty, General Manager, EMEA, Microsoft Cloud Operations & Innovation, said: “Finding alternatives to diesel backup is an important step towards our 2030 goal to become carbon negative, and is integral to our 2050 goal to remove from the environment all the carbon that Microsoft has emitted since it was founded in 1975.” Saft delivered the BESS on a turnkey basis with integrated power conversion and control equipment divided across four independent groups. The scope included a total of eight Intensium Max 20 High Energy containers organized in 4 groups, each capable of delivering a peak power rating of 3 MW. 

About Saft   

Saft specializes in advanced technology battery solutions for industry, from the design and development to the production, customization and service provision. For more than 100 years, Saft’s longer-lasting batteries and systems have provided critical safety applications, back-up power and propulsion for our customers. Our innovative, safe and reliable technology delivers high performance on land, at sea, in the air and in space.  

Saft is powering industry and smarter cities, while providing critical back-up functionality in remote and harsh environments from the Arctic Circle to the Sahara Desert. Saft is a wholly owned subsidiary of TotalEnergies, a broad energy company that produces and markets energies on a global scale: oil and biofuels, natural gas and green gases, renewables and electricity. 

We energize the world.  www.saft.com 

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Press Contacts 

Saft : Belén d’Alexis, Corporate Communications Manager 
Tel.: +33 7 62 53 12 98, email: belen.dalexis@saft.com 

Definition Agency: Andrew Bartlett, Tel.: +44 207 580 6502, email: andrew.bartlett@definitionagency.com