Chinese company U Power, through its joint venture Hydro Data JV, will develop an integrated energy solution for a 100 MW data center in Rayong province, Thailand.
The project partners include infrastructure developer CEWA Group and hydrogen systems manufacturer Jiangsu Guofu Hydrogen Energy Equipment.
The initiative will start with a pilot data center of 3 MW. This phase is essential for testing technological efficiency and the economic model before full-scale implementation.
Hydro Data JV will oversee the integration and management of the energy system using AI. Guofu Hydrogen Energy will supply the generation equipment and provide servicing, while CEWA will handle local infrastructure.
U Power plans to register a subsidiary in Thailand by the end of July, with operational launch expected within 90 days thereafter.
The joint venture was established in April with Jiangsu Guofu Hydrogen Energy Equipment and Cloud Digital Chain Limited.
The company aims to profit from the design, supply, installation, operation, and management of energy. The system is intended to provide both primary and backup power for the data center.
The project is entering a rapidly growing market. In early May, Thailand's Investment Board approved six major initiatives worth 958 billion baht (~$29 billion). Three of these are data centers and hosting projects totaling 913 billion baht (~$27 billion).
These include the expansion of TikTok's infrastructure, a 200 MW data center by DAMAC Group, and a 134 MW project by Bridge Data Centres.
Notably, in March, The Economist predicted the era of space-based data centers.