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In a previous article, we discussed the Japanese government’s consideration of providing tax breaks and subsidies for data center construction projects that demonstrate a high degree of decarbonization.

This time, we will examine the initiatives of Ishikari City in Hokkaido, Japan, which has already taken steps to establish itself as a data center hub focused on decarbonization.

Ishikari City’s Data Center Business Initiatives for Decarbonization

Ishikari City has been selected by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment as a “leading decarbonization region” as part of its goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

The city has also formulated a zero-carbon policy titled “Rediscovering the Region with Locally Produced Renewable Energy and Decarbonization” and has been working to create a decarbonized industrial cluster by supplying renewable energy (hereinafter referred to as “renewable energy”) to a group of data centers and surrounding facilities in the Ishikari Bay New Port area.

In November 2022, Flower Communications Co., Ltd., Hokkaido Electric Power Co., Inc., and Tokyu Real Estate Co., Ltd. signed a basic agreement to commercialize a data center operated entirely on renewable energy in Ishikari City.

Ishikari Renewable Energy Data Center No. 1 (ISRD), a limited liability company established by Flower Communications, is set to develop and operate the facility, with an opening scheduled for 2026.

Furthermore, in May 2023, Broadband Tower Co., Ltd. and ISRD entered into an agreement to commercialize the renewable energy data center scheduled to open in 2026.

As a data center specialist, Broadband Tower will participate in the business and contribute to the project by providing data center services within a section of the renewable energy data center.

The “Hokkaido Newtopia Data Center Research Association,” to which Broadband Tower, Flower Communications, Hokkaido Electric Power, and Tokyu Real Estate all belong, has been actively discussing the importance of Hokkaido’s role in Japan’s submarine cable topology due to its geographical location and the active planning of submarine cable laying projects in the Arctic Ocean, as well as the significance of establishing Hokkaido as a data center hub.

Broadband Tower and ISRD view this project as one of the fruits of these discussions and are eager to address various challenges related to data centers, such as greening and decentralization, in collaboration with local governments and businesses, in line with national and local government policies.

ISRD and this project have been selected as indirect subsidy recipients by the foundation established under the Supplementary Budget for FY2021 for the “Strengthening of Digital Infrastructure by Decentralizing Data Centers and Submarine Cables,” and the Japanese government is expected to provide support for the establishment of data centers in Ishikari City.

Expectations for Industrial Cluster Development and Regional Economic Growth

With the support of national and local government policies, the renewable energy data center park in Ishikari City, where the project is planned, is expected to see the aggregation of renewable energy-powered data centers and related industries.

Additionally, if the government’s subsidies for decarbonization become more substantial, how will Ishikari City develop? Expectations are high for the rapid growth of the region as a data center and related industry hub and for further development of the data center business.