atNorth Recycles Heat by Powering Neighbouring Kesko Store

atNorth and Kesko have brought a new heat reuse partnership online, marking a step forward in integrating circular economy principles into data centre operations.

The initiative channels waste heat generated by atNorth’s FIN02 data centre in Espoo to a neighbouring Kesko retail store, repurposing excess heat from the facility’s infrastructure.

The project is supplying almost all of the store’s heating requirements, which reduces its reliance on district heating while hitting sustainability targets by lowering emissions for both organisations.

Turning excess heat into local value

The collaboration reflects a growing focus across the data centre sector on capturing and reusing surplus energy.

At FIN02, heat generated by high-density compute workloads is redirected rather than dissipated, improving overall energy efficiency and embedding the facility within the local energy ecosystem.

The project contributes directly to Kesko's emissions reduction targets, with the company aiming for a 58.8 percent reduction in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions and heating representing a significant share of its operational footprint.

By drawing on FIN02's waste heat, Kesko expects to cut emissions linked to district heating by approximately 200 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent each year, accounting for around 0.9 percent of its district heating emissions.

“Reducing emissions from the heating of our properties is a key priority within our sustainability strategy,” said Antti Kokkonen, Director of Energy at Kesko.

“Through this collaboration with atNorth, we are able to significantly cut emissions at one of our stores while demonstrating how innovative partnerships can accelerate the transition to lower-carbon operations.”

Data centres as energy ecosystem partners

The project underlines the expanding role of data centres beyond their traditional function as digital infrastructure hubs.

As demand for AI-ready capacity continues to rise, operators are under increasing pressure to ensure facilities scale in a way that balances performance with sustainability.

Heat reuse is emerging as a practical route to achieving this. Integrating with local energy systems essentially means data centres can offset waste while providing a secondary resource to nearby buildings or district heating networks.

“As demand for AI-ready digital infrastructure continues to grow, it is essential that data centres scale responsibly,” said Erling Gudmundsson, COO at atNorth.

“This project demonstrates how data centres can become active contributors to local energy systems.

“By recycling excess heat, we can reduce our client’s environmental footprint while supporting our partners’ sustainability goals and delivering tangible benefits to the surrounding community.”

Expanding a Nordic strategy

The FIN02 facility forms part of atNorth’s broader expansion across the Nordic region, where access to renewable energy and cooler climates continues to attract data centre investment. Within this strategy, heat reuse is becoming a core design and operational consideration.

The company has been developing similar initiatives across its portfolio, aiming to align digital infrastructure growth with regional sustainability goals.

atNorth is working to ensure that increased compute demand does not translate directly into higher environmental impact, all by embedding circular energy solutions into its sites.

Building a portfolio of heat reuse projects

The Kesko partnership follows a series of heat reuse collaborations already underway across atNorth’s footprint.

These include a community greenhouse project in Akureyri, Iceland, alongside partnerships with waste-to-energy company Vestforbrænding in Denmark and Stockholm Exergi in Sweden to supply heat into district heating networks.

Together, these projects show that data centre operators are exploring different models for heat recovery, depending on local infrastructure and demand.

Whether they are supplying commercial buildings or enabling community initiatives, the underlying principle is consistent, converting what was once excess into a usable energy resource.

At FIN02, the direct link between data centre and retail site demonstrates a localised approach, where proximity enables efficient transfer and immediate impact.

With more facilities being built in urban and suburban locations, similar opportunities are expected to emerge, particularly where high-density workloads generate consistent heat output.

For atNorth, the project reinforces its approach to combining high-performance data centre design with practical sustainability measures, using partnerships to extend the value of its infrastructure beyond core compute services.