Green Data Centre Programme Grant Call

Call for Research Proposals in the Area of Data Centre Energy Efficiency Improvement

BACKGROUND

Data Centres (DCs) are a critical infrastructure – the new “ports” for the future – that are necessary for digital companies to effectively process, store and distribute their content. However, DCs are energy-intensive facilities, and are a key contributor to the growth in electricity consumption by Infocomm sector. In 2016 the sector accounted for 3.8%¹ of the overall electricity consumption in Singapore. With strong demand for services such as cloud computing, Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence, electricity demands are projected to continue to grow over the next decade.

The Green Data Centre Programme (GDCP) has been established to accelerate the pace of development and commercialisation of key technologies in data centre energy efficiencyGDCP supports high impact Research, Development and Demonstration (RD&D) initiatives in multi-disciplinary domains by leveraging on local research and industry ecosystem.

SCOPE OF THE GRANT CALL

For this grant call, research proposals are invited that positively impact the energy efficiency performance of DCs in Singapore and beyond.

The proposals may come from domain areas such as IT, data hall and facility systems. The proposals in areas that cut-cross these domains and drive energy efficiency improvements through whole-systems approach will also be considered. The diagram below provides a non-exhaustive list of domains and cross-domain technologies that will be considered for this grant call.

Eligibility, Funding Support and Other Important Information

1. This Grant Call is open to all organisations based in Singapore, including Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs), public sector agencies, not-for-profit research entities, companies and company-affiliated research entities.
2. Proposals submitted should not be currently funded or are being considered for funding by other agencies.
3. Funding awarded cannot be used to support overseas R&D activities. All funding awarded must be used to carry out the research activities in Singapore.
4. IHLs, public sector agencies and not-for-profit research entities will qualify for 100% funding support of approved qualifying direct costs². Companies and company-affiliated research entities will qualify for up to 70% of approved qualifying direct costs of a project.
5. The project duration, including completion of the final report and all miscellaneous project activities, shall not exceed 3 years. The proposed project schedule must be realistic, allowing sufficient time for the preparation of final report and for the review of project results.

For submission of research proposals and other details, please proceed to the National Research Foundation IGMS System here.

You can also email to Green Data Centre Programme Office for details on submission requirements and clarification on conditions of the proposal.

References:

Grant Call Briefing 6 Sep 2018 (1.38MB)

Grant Call Potential Research Areas (234.53KB)

¹ 2017 – Singapore energy statistics published by Energy Market Authority (EMA)

² The project qualifying cost will be in accordance with NRF guide on project cost items.