First water reclamation projects for data centre launch in Johor
Three plants to reclaim up to 12 million litres of treated wastewater daily.
The first large-scale water reclamation project just for data centres in Malaysia is taking off with at least three large hyperscalers in Johor.
According to various media reports today, up to 12 million litres of treated wastewater will be supplied for data centre operations in Johor.
This is part of a sustainable wastewater programme in Malaysia.
Treated wastewater
Treated effluent from sewage treatment plants (STP), instead of being discharged, will be piped to individual water reclamation plants (WRP).
Here's how it works:
- Household wastewater goes to STPs.
- (Non-potable) Treated wastewater goes to WRPs.
- Reclaimed water goes to data centres.
Based on reports, I infer that up to 4 million litres per day of treated effluent water will be supplied to each of the reclamation plant run by three hyperscalers.
Presumably, more data centre operators will come onboard in stages.
The three hyperscalers
Who are the three hyperscalers?
According to a report on Bernama that quoted the CEO of National sewerage company Indah Water Konsortium, they are:
- Computility Technology.
- Bridge Data Centres.
- DayOne Data Centre.
Computility is owned by Beijing-based ZData, which in Feb did a groundbreaking for its GP3 data centre campus in Johor.
Solving the water problem
In February, Malaysia's main water regulator, the National Water Services Commission (Span) announced upcoming rules for data centre water use due to an impending shortage.
One solution offered is for data centres to use reclaimed water.
AirTrunk became the first to announce a plan to recycle wastewater for its Johor data centres in April. However, it's now beaten to the punch by other hyperscalers.
Bridge Data Centres (BDC) last week shared in a LinkedIn post that it is the first data centre in Johor to repurpose treated effluent as reclaimed water for operational use.
In the post, BDC said its water reclamation plant is currently in its testing and commissioning phase and will soon be fully operational.
A new era in sustainability
While Singapore’s PUB has been supplying reclaimed water to data centres since 2003, Malaysia is opting for a different approach, with private operators building their own water reclamation plants.
This commercial approach offers distinct advantages:
- Faster time-to-market.
- Direct operational control.
- Flexibility to choose reclaimation tech.
The bottom line? Sustainable water management isn't just feasible anymore - it's becoming a competitive necessity.
