MODERATOR at the 90th Thessaloniki International Fair: Sustainable Data Centers in Focus

On 9 September 2026, the MODERATOR project participated in the 90th Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF) with a dedicated event entitled “Sustainable Data Centers: Challenges & Opportunities”, bringing together different perspectives on what is required to make the continued growth of data centres more sustainable.

Rather than focusing on a single technology, the event explored the broader technological, energy and societal dimensions of sustainable data-centre development. Discussions addressed the evolving role of data centres, innovative cooling solutions, the recovery and productive use of waste heat, and the importance of social acceptance and engagement with local communities.

The programme brought together experts from CERTH, SYNAPSECOM, ITA GROUP and Electra Energy Cooperative. Dr. Demosthenis Ioannidis (CERTH) discussed current developments and trends shaping the data-centre sector, while Dr. Dimitris Koutsonikolas (CERTH) presented “MODERATOR: A holistic approach to sustainable data centers”. Anastasios Karaliotas (SYNAPSECOM) introduced the COOLBLOCK cooling system, Dr. Dimitris Grimekis (ITA GROUP) examined potential applications and end users for recovered heat, and Dimitris Kitsikopoulos (Electra Energy Cooperative) addressed social acceptance and the role of local communities.

Through these complementary perspectives, the event highlighted that improving the sustainability of data centres requires more than increasing the efficiency of individual components. Cooling, heat recovery and reuse, system integration and the interaction of new infrastructure with its surrounding communities all need to be considered together.

For MODERATOR, the event also came at an important stage in the project’s development. The project has now entered the pilot installation build-up and commissioning phase, marking the transition from the development of individual technological components towards their integration, installation and testing as part of the MODERATOR pilot system.

This next phase will bring together the project’s work on immersion cooling, thermal energy storage, waste-heat recovery, insulation, monitoring and control, moving MODERATOR closer to demonstrating its integrated approach to more energy-efficient and sustainable data-centre operation.

More information about the 90th Thessaloniki International Fair here.