Cumulus Data appoints new Chief Data Centre Officer

Cumulus Data, a subsidiary of Talen Energy Corporation, has announced that it has appointed Kevin Dalton to the role of Chief Data Centre Officer. As part of the role, Dalton will lead the design, construction, and operation of Cumulus Data centres and support technical customer sales efforts, the company said. He will report to Alex Hernandez, CEO of Cumulus Data and President of Talen. 

Dalton joins Cumulus with over 30 years of experience in building data centres and will focus initially on delivering Cumulus Data's flagship digital campus outside Berwick, Pennsylvania, which will be powered via direct interconnect to Talen's carbon-free Susquehanna nuclear generation facility. The first data centre is expected to be commercially available for lease in the second half of 2022.

Alex Hernandez, Cumulus Chief Executive Officer and Talen President, said: “Kevin's vast experience in developing 1,000 MW of data centre capacity, which equates to approximately US$10bn of capex across over 75 data centres globally complements the strength of our team and will ensure Cumulus delivers a high-quality product to our customers. 

“The combination of our low-cost, reliable, and carbon-free energy enables Cumulus Data to offer the lowest total cost of ownership together with ESG benefits to the cloud, AI, and data centre clients globally. Additionally, Cumulus offers customers the ability to supplement its carbon-free offering with 400 Megawatts of new solar generation capacity under development in Pennsylvania," he added.

Before joining Cumulus, Dalton served as Senior Vice President of Design and Construction for NTT Global Data Centres, where he led global data centre design and supply chain functions. Prior to joining NTT Global Data Centres, Dalton spent 12 years at Digital Realty, a global leader in data centre, colocation, and integration strategies, and in technical and senior management roles, including seven years as vice president of engineering, leading teams of engineers to deliver data centre solutions for customers around the world. 

"I am pleased to join Cumulus Data in this new role, and look forward to working with the team to both design and construct our flagship campus as we lead the clean energy and digital infrastructure transition," Dalton said. "I look forward to working with Alex and the team to construct world-class facilities for the campus' tenants, create a template for future expansion, and provide significant opportunities for the communities in which we operate."

Digital infrastructure investment 

The Cumulus Data digital infrastructure investment will create family-sustaining jobs, technology training, and other economic benefits including tax revenue and increased consumption of local goods and services to both the Commonwealth and surrounding community. The Cumulus Data investment and digital campus is a tangible expression of Talen's Force for Good strategy to invest in and support the communities in which it operates.