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| Facebook sets up data centre in Lapland, Sweden | Facebook sets up data centre in Lapland, Sweden |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Facebook is heading to Lapland, lured not by the possibility of seeing Father Christmas but because of the climate. | Facebook is heading to Lapland, lured not by the possibility of seeing Father Christmas but because of the climate. |
| Temperatures in the city of Lulea, in northern Sweden, make it the perfect location for the social media giant's first non-US data centre. | Temperatures in the city of Lulea, in northern Sweden, make it the perfect location for the social media giant's first non-US data centre. |
| It means it can use outside air for cooling its servers for up to 10 months of the year. | It means it can use outside air for cooling its servers for up to 10 months of the year. |
| The facility will process data from Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. It will cover 30,000 square metres. | The facility will process data from Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. It will cover 30,000 square metres. |
| That is the equivalent of around 11 football pitches. | That is the equivalent of around 11 football pitches. |
| The social network needs to ramp up its computing power as it continues to grow. It currently has more than 800 million users. | The social network needs to ramp up its computing power as it continues to grow. It currently has more than 800 million users. |
| 'Like Lego' | 'Like Lego' |
| Up until 2009 Facebook leased space in data centres but then made the decision to design and build its own. | Up until 2009 Facebook leased space in data centres but then made the decision to design and build its own. |
| The new centre will be powered primarily by renewable energy and will require 70% less generator power. | |
| It will also benefit from Lulea's electricity prices which are some of the cheapest in Europe. | It will also benefit from Lulea's electricity prices which are some of the cheapest in Europe. |
| Gaining a global brand like Facebook will be a big coup for the city and it hopes others will follow. | Gaining a global brand like Facebook will be a big coup for the city and it hopes others will follow. |
| More companies are placing their data centres in Northern Europe because the climate works well for the cooling systems necessitated by racks of huge servers. | More companies are placing their data centres in Northern Europe because the climate works well for the cooling systems necessitated by racks of huge servers. |
| Facebook prides itself on the fact that its engineers have built its infrastructure from scratch - including the design of the servers themselves. | Facebook prides itself on the fact that its engineers have built its infrastructure from scratch - including the design of the servers themselves. |
| "Assembling the servers is like building a Lego model, the parts snap together. The servers slot in and out of their racks by flipping a couple of catches," the firm explained. | "Assembling the servers is like building a Lego model, the parts snap together. The servers slot in and out of their racks by flipping a couple of catches," the firm explained. |
| The design of the fans mean they consume far less energy than a traditional server, it added. | The design of the fans mean they consume far less energy than a traditional server, it added. |