Power + Thermal Layer: Why Cold Matters

Cold climates offer cooling advantages — but don’t hallucinate this into “free energy.”

Compute Cooling

Advantages

• More hours of economized cooling — “Free cooling” from cold ambient air
• Lower PUE — Power Usage Effectiveness improves with reduced HVAC load
• Stable heat rejection — Consistent cold sink year-round

Constraints

You still need:

Fab Cooling (Semiconductors)

Advanced fabs are dominated by cleanroom HVAC, filtration, and strict temperature/humidity stability.

Cold Climate Benefits

• Reduced lift — Less work per unit heat removed (chiller efficiency)
• More stable heat rejection — Consistent condenser performance

Cold Climate Constraints

• Tight internal control still required
• Per-wafer water requirements remain substantial
• Cleanroom HVAC recirculation dominates energy

Don’t confuse “cool air” with “cheap fab.”

Water Requirements

Semiconductor manufacturing consumes large volumes of ultrapure water (UPW):

Winter operations: Water intake and treatment must handle freeze/thaw cycles.

Waste Heat Reuse

In cold regions, waste heat from data centers is a resource:

1
Data Center Heat Output
2
        ↓
3
    Heat Exchanger
4
        ↓
5
    District Heating Grid
6
        ↓
7
    Community Buildings / Greenhouses

This converts “cooling cost” into “community heat,” improving overall system economics.

Key Metrics