Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry Sun Dong said on Saturday that plans are in place to deal with the extra demand for electricity once the Sandy Ridge data facility in the Northern Metropolis comes online.

Speaking at a groundbreaking ceremony for the data facility cluster at Sandy Ridge, he said the project to set up a supercomputing hub would inject new impetus into the SAR’s innovation and technology developmental efforts as well as raise the Greater Bay Area’s profile in the international digital economy.

On electricity arrangement for the site, Sun said "Hong Kong’s electricity supply system is mature and comprehensive".

"The electricity supplier concerned has sufficient electricity generation capacity and grid dispatch capability to meet demand from each type of user," he said.

"Electricity usage at Sandy Ridge is long term, steady and foreseeable. There won't be a sudden surge."

He said a taskforce – made up of various officials such as from Environment and Ecology Bureau and the Transport Department – that had been set up to help carry forward the project will also start operating the day the data facility comes online.

Once the cluster begins operating in 2029, Sun said, it will be a key driver for the artificial industry industry in Hong Kong and lure talent and firms from around the world.

The facility will also provide a secure, efficient and reliable infrastructure for data flow and act as a hub that connects the mainland with the rest of the world, he said.

Zhou Chaonan – founder of the parent company of Hong Kong Range Intelligent Computing Technology, which won the tender – said she envisioned the place becoming Hong Kong's or even the nation's Silicon Valley.



Edited by Thomas McAlinden