This is an excerpt from an article featured in ATMOsphere’s “Clean Cooling for Data Centers 2025” report, which can be downloaded here. ATMOsphere is the publisher of NaturalRefrigerants.com. You can read part 1 here.

There are thousands of Alfa Laval heat exchangers installed in data centers across the world. The installed base is large, and each year the industry adds hundreds of large gasketed plate heat exchangers alongside thousands of compact brazed units, according to Anna Blomborg, Head of Data Centers at the company.

Not long ago, a 100MW facility was considered large in the data center sector. Today, Alfa Laval is supporting projects that scale to and above 1GW.

The U.S. leads the way, representing around half of Alfa Laval’s data center business, with Asia contributing 30% and Europe 20%. Looking ahead, the company sees strong opportunities in high-growth regions such as China, India and Thailand, as well as Northern Europe.

Rapid expansion brings both opportunity and complexity. Meeting demand at this scale requires significant investment, not only in advanced equipment but also in expanding manufacturing capacity and reducing lead times. Alfa Laval is addressing this challenge head-on with strategic investments in new production lines and factory enlargements to boost efficiency and throughput, Blomborg said.

At the same time, accurate forecasting is critical as the industry navigates uncertainty around the pace of AI-driven growth. “The big question is what the AI growth curve looks like three or four years from now,” Blomborg said. “It’s shaping every decision we make today and we’re building flexibility into our operations to stay ahead.”

Sustainability and regulatory opportunities

The U.S. data center market is flush with opportunities because of its focus on speed. The EU’s focus on sustainability and regulation is also creating opportunities for Alfa Laval. The company is targeting net-zero Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 2027 and a 50% reduction in Scope 3 emissions by 2030 compared to a 2020 baseline.

It’s increasing its purchases of green steel and copper, too. “Today we’re measured on delivery time, accuracy, and quality,” Blomborg said. “But we believe sustainability will soon become a key factor in supplier selection, and we’re ready for that shift.”

Regarding a possible PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) restriction in the EU, Blomborg said Alfa Laval would “welcome” such a regulation. She said the company is an ambassador for natural refrigerants and that there is “frustration internally that the industry isn’t pushing harder for natural refrigerants and that PFAS urgency is lacking.”

While a potential PFAS ban is still years away, there are already regulations in Europe mandating heat reuse for data centers. In September 2023 the EU revised its Energy Efficiency Directive, requiring data centers with 500kW or more of installed IT power to track waste heat utilization. Facilities with 1MW or more of installed IT power capacity must implement waste heat recovery unless technically or economically unfeasible. Germany and France have gone further, introducing laws that mandate progressive waste heat reuse targets up to 20% by 2028. 

Alfa Laval is actively supporting this transition. Its heat exchanger technology is designed to maximize energy recovery, enabling operators to capture and repurpose waste heat for district heating or internal reuse. By engineering efficient products that can easily integrate with many different reuse options, such as absorption cooling or organic Rankine cycle systems, Alfa Laval helps data centers turn excess heat into a valuable resource, Blomborg said. 

As chips get more powerful, the heat they generate becomes more valuable for reuse. Chip temperatures of 60°C (140°F) could enable waste heat to be turned into electricity, Blomborg said. “Efficiency may not be perfect, but, with the sheer volume of heat available, it might be interesting enough,” Blomborg said. “I’m excited about what’s possible.”