Singapore has taken important steps towards sustainable growth in its digital economy by launching a new energy efficiency standard for data centers.
The SS 715:2025 standard for Energy Efficiency of Data Centre IT Equipment helps operators, consultants, and users save energy and supports national sustainability goals. It advances the Green Data Centre Roadmap and follows the Tropical Data Centre standard (SS 697:2023).
Data centers are crucial to Singapore’s digital economy, driving innovation and growth. However, IT equipment in these centers uses about 60% of total energy, a figure likely to increase with the rise of AI and heavy computing tasks.
The new standard aims for at least 30% energy savings by efficiently procuring and operating modern, energy-efficient IT equipment in data centers.
The SS 715:2025 standard establishes minimum performance benchmarks for servers, storage, and networking devices in data centers. It aligns with international certifications like US Energy Star and EU Ecodesign, ensuring equipment meets global energy efficiency standards.
The standard helps users choose IT equipment wisely, ensuring lower energy use without sacrificing performance.
The standard emphasizes best practices for optimizing IT equipment operations beyond procurement. Key recommendations are to consolidate workloads, replace older systems with fewer, more powerful machines that use energy efficiently, and regularly monitor equipment utilization to remove low-use assets.
These measures ensure equipment is genuinely energy efficient, leading to significant and measurable energy savings in various data centers.
Another important aspect of the standard is its support for higher temperature operations. IT equipment should be able to operate safely at up to 35°C, enabling data centers to adopt the Tropical Data Centre approach introduced in 2023. Operating cooling systems at higher temperatures can bring additional benefits of 2% to 5% energy savings for every 1°C increase, reducing reliance on traditional energy-intensive cooling methods.
This forward-looking approach reflects Singapore’s adaptability to tropical conditions and positions the nation as a model for other regions pursuing sustainable digital infrastructure and resilient data center growth.
To further encourage adoption, IMDA is offering an Energy Efficiency Grant for the data center sector. The grant co-funds the purchase of pre-approved energy-efficient IT equipment, supporting data center end-users in upgrading their infrastructure to meet the requirements defined in SS 715:2025. This ensures that the transition to greener digital infrastructure is both feasible and financially viable.
Industry players have already expressed strong support for the initiative. GovTech Singapore will incorporate the new energy efficiency baselines into its upcoming IT Bulk Tender, requiring suppliers to comply with the standard and mandating the use of energy-efficient IT equipment within government data centers.
A leading global data center operator highlighted that the standard complements its own sustainability initiatives and provides opportunities to collaborate with customers in improving IT efficiency.
The introduction of SS 715:2025 reflects Singapore’s holistic approach to empowering data centers. By combining internationally aligned benchmarks, operational best practices, financial incentives and strong industry collaboration, Singapore is equipping its digital infrastructure to meet future demands sustainably.
This initiative strengthens data center resilience and positions the country as a leader in sustainable digital transformation.
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