Taiwan CPC is examining whether cold energy released as liquefied natural gas changes into gas can be used to cool AI servers.
As AI computing increases, reducing server heat is becoming more important, but whether this cold energy can actually be supplied to data centers requires separate consideration of the relevant conditions.
What Taiwan CPC has secured is inquiries from operators and a site-utilization plan, not an adoption decision or operational results.
3-Line Summary
1. Taiwan CPC received inquiries about AI cooling
2. The Yong’an facility has 500 tons of cold energy per hour
3. Actual utilization remains subject to operator evaluation
Cold Energy Generated When LNG Is Converted into Gas
Taiwan CPC (台灣中油) said on September 14 that AI server companies and telecommunications operators had inquired about the cold-energy resources of natural-gas receiving terminals. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is transported in liquid form and then converted back into gas at its destination for use. This vaporization process generates substantial cold energy, increasing interest in using it for server cooling.
According to Taiwan CPC, the Kaohsiung Yong’an natural-gas receiving terminal can provide approximately 500 tons of cold energy per hour, based on peak and off-peak periods of recent supply demand. This cold energy is already being used to produce industrial gases. Specifically, approximately 37만 tons of cold energy is supplied annually to Wondong Gas for use in producing liquid oxygen, liquid nitrogen, and liquid argon.
Inside the terminal, chilled water made using cold energy is used for air conditioning to reduce power consumption. Taiwan CPC said it saved approximately 2025 396만 kWh. Cold wastewater produced after LNG vaporization is also supplied to aquaculture operations in the Yong’an area, and a seaweed-farming test facility is in operation. The fact that cold energy has been used in multiple ways rather than simply discarded as a byproduct is the starting point for the current discussion about AI cooling.
An Inquiry Does Not Mean Data-Center Adoption
An official from Taiwan CPC’s Natural Gas Business Division explained that inquiries had in fact been received as demand for heat management in data centers and servers increased with the expansion of AI computing. However, the companies making inquiries must also review conditions such as power consumption, and they remain at the evaluation stage. Therefore, it is difficult to say that LNG cold energy has been adopted as a cooling method for AI data centers.
Taiwan CPC plans to retain land around the Kaohsiung Zhouji Receiving Terminal for cold-energy utilization and is considering recruiting outside operators through leasing or bidding. The company also said it envisions providing the cold energy and selecting the targets expected to have the greatest impact if system companies propose methods of cooperation. This concerns the company’s internal work and future plans; it is not an announcement that a contractual counterparty or business schedule has been finalized.
Discussions about using cold energy are also linked to plans to expand the receiving terminals. In other reports, Taiwan CPC explained that the combined utilization rate of the existing three receiving terminals for storage and transportation had exceeded their designed capacity, reaching as high as 108%. It expected that the utilization rate could be lowered to 60~70% in 2034 if expansions of the Zhouji Receiving Terminal and the Taichung terminal, among others, proceed. However, this is a forecast based on the premise that construction and commercial operations proceed as planned.
The key point to confirm in this matter is not the existence of cold energy, but whether users with the necessary power, equipment, and business-case conditions will actually emerge near the receiving terminal. Taiwan CPC’s announcement shows only that the possibility is being examined.
References
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