Green AI… An Attempt to Explain It

A Bird's Eye View at Firmus Technologies, St Leonards

I and some colleagues went into a tour of the Firmus AI Factory at St Leonards last week with a sceptic's mind on energy and water usage. What changed it wasn't a press release. It was standing in their R&D section, with the Chief Operating Officer and electrical engineer walking us through exactly how everything worked, and watching the cooling system actually run, in all its obvious efficiency.

This wasn't a showroom version of the technology. The system we saw was a fully operational R&D facility, with technicians in adjoining computer rooms actively measuring and monitoring it through the cables feeding in from the floor we were standing on. We asked many questions, and they were answered openly and in detail, not deflected or glossed over.

There is a real difference between hearing how a technology works, and watching it work. The closed-loop system in front of us looked practical, logical, and more water efficient (if I'm honest) than filling a sink to wash up or running a bath for a ten-minute soak at the end of a long day. That comparison sounds almost too simplistic, but it's the right scale to think at. We're used to imagining data centres as abstractly enormous.

Standing next to the actual loop, with someone who understood its intricacies explaining it properly, made the engineering feel ordinary in the best way: contained, deliberate, measured in real time, and built specifically to not waste what it doesn't have to.

There has also been a lot of conversation lately about AI infrastructure proposed for Tasmania, including questions raised in State Parliament about energy use, water use, and transparency. So before getting into the numbers Firmus publishes, here is what I saw first-hand, followed by what is, hopefully, a plain-English explanation of the underlying technology, with the company's own figures clearly marked as theirs.

💧Water: Two Different Approaches

The old approach: Traditional data centres typically use evaporative air cooling. It works a bit like a giant, constantly sweating air conditioner, continually losing water to the atmosphere to keep equipment cool. This is a well-documented industry pattern, not a rumour.

The newer approach: Operators like Firmus Technologies use closed-loop liquid cooling instead. Think of it like a car radiator: the cooling fluid is sealed inside a closed system and recirculated rather than evaporated away. Because the fluid stays contained, this approach is structurally capable of using far less water than evaporative systems.

What I saw: On the tour, the loop itself was visibly closed and running, with technicians actively monitoring it in real time from adjoining computer rooms. That's a meaningful thing to see with your own eyes: the system genuinely operates the way it's described, not just on paper.

What Firmus claims: Firmus states that its facilities use around 99 percent less water than standard data centres, and that they're designed to run on dry cooling alone for more than 350 days a year, drawing minimal water only on the hottest days. These are the company's own figures, and what I saw on the floor is consistent with the design working as intended.

⚡Power: Two Different Approaches

The old approach: Air-cooled data centres lose a significant amount of electricity simply fighting heat, on top of whatever power their computers actually use to do useful work.

The newer approach: Direct liquid cooling removes heat more efficiently than air, which is why operators using it report substantial reductions in that overhead power loss. The engineer who walked us through the facility explained this part in detail, and answered every follow-up question we put to him without hesitation.

What Firmus claims: Firmus says switching from air to direct liquid cooling cuts power waste by up to 60 percent, and that its facilities operate at a Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of under 1.10, against a global data centre average of around 1.59. PUE is a genuine, standard industry metric (1.0 is the theoretical perfect score, meaning no energy lost to overhead), so the concept is sound.

🌿Grid Alignment

Operators choosing sites with existing renewable generation, such as Tasmania's hydro and wind capacity, is a real and sensible location strategy, and one Firmus has pointed to in explaining why it chose Tasmania. They spoke of their preference for proximity to a sub-station and that Tasmania's renewable energy supply was a deciding factor for them, as it fits neatly into their renewable modus operandi.

Some sources claim that Firmus's combined proposed sites (St Leonards, Bell Bay, and a potential third site at Wesley Vale) could draw between 15 and 20 percent of the state's total electricity supply if all three proceed.

The Bell Bay proposal has drawn its own share of criticism in recent days, and reasonable people can disagree on where these facilities should go and how quickly they should be approved. What I will say from my own experience is that seeing the technology in person changed my view more than any of the complex information I'd read about it. I'd encourage anyone wanting to form a balanced opinion on these proposals to take up Firmus's offer of a tour if they can.

Tasmania's renewable generation is substantial, but “renewable” and “available without trade-offs” aren't automatically the same thing, and that's a conversation worth having honestly rather than waving away.

What This All Means

This has also been a live political conversation, not just a technical one, with vastly opposing views across the political spectrum. The state's tech sector body, TasICT, has taken the middle ground, backing greater transparency without opposing the investment itself.

None of that changes the underlying engineering picture covered above. What it does reinforce is the importance of future conversations resting on independently verified figures and genuine community consultation.

What This Means for Our Region

Strip away the politics for a moment and the underlying technology shift is very real: closed-loop liquid cooling is a genuine engineering improvement over evaporative air cooling, for any operator that implements it properly and commits consistently to ongoing technological advancement. That's worth understanding on its own terms, separate from any single company's marketing.

For our region as for others, hosting efficiency-focused operators, if they do deliver on what they propose, can mean high-tech jobs and a diverse use of our industrial land that could add value to other businesses. It also begs the question, “Where else can we look to see such innovation applied?”

Firmus points to projects like Project Southgate repurposing existing industrial sites rather than greenfield land, and to ongoing roles in advanced manufacturing, electrical engineering, and IT operations alongside the construction phase.

What we saw firsthand on our tour of the facility was a company passionately committed to delivering better, in a field that has had a rocky start, lacking, as it did, a high level of trust and a solid reputation. People usually distrust what they don't understand, myself included. Like many emerging industries, Firmus has had to fight its corner for general acceptance of its product and its methods of delivery.

Firmus didn't just absorb the negativity aimed at the wider sector; it has designed real, practical responses to people's genuine concerns about renewable energy and water conservation. The team also showed a real commitment to ongoing research and development, continuing to find and implement technological advances that refine their environmental footprint further. It is that commitment that was probably responsible for swaying my mind.

There was almost an enjoyment of the challenge in how they spoke about it, like a knight relishing a fight against an opponent far bigger than themselves, a fight they seem determined to win.

Are they tilting at windmills then, like some modern-day Don Quixote chasing an imaginary enemy? I don't think so. Unlike Quixote, they appear to have a lot more than a wooden lance and a tired old horse behind them.

The honest version of this story is also the more persuasive one: better cooling technology that significantly cuts dependence on water resources, is a real step forward from the old data centre model, and our community is also right to seek clear answers, independently verified figures, and a genuine say in how these proposals proceed. Backing one doesn't require dismissing the other.

Of course, there is still work to do. Gaining social licence and ensuring the community gets maximum benefit from an actively functioning circular economy will both be critical, if a centre of this type is ever to be considered for our area. Is that something Firmus seems open to? Yes, it is.

They also appear to be punching above their weight internationally, with their methodologies already winning recognition against far larger, more established competitors, on the measurements that matter most.

And what's more, they are open to scrutiny. Firmus indicated to us that they are happy to open their doors to tours of interested parties, openly putting its facility and its function on display, and that kind of openness is significant in itself.

Was I convinced enough to think this technology deserves a closer look? Absolutely. And for the record, I'm a well-known AI troglodyte.

Kate Keenan

Coordinator Economic Development

References

Firmus Technologies

1. Firmus Technologies, “Tasmanian World-First AI Factory Zone Clears Path for Firmus' Project Southgate.” https://firmus.co/newsroom/tasmanian-world-first-ai-factory-zone-clears-path-for-firmus-project-southgate
2. Firmus Technologies, “Infrastructure and Cooling Principles.” https://firmus.co/infrastructure/principles
3. Firmus Technologies, “Southgate Expansion.” https://firmus.co/newsroom/southgate-expansion

Independent Reporting

1. The Examiner, “New Tasmanian AI Data Centre Spark Concerns From Locals.” https://www.examiner.com.au/story/9296866/new-tasmanian-ai-data-centre-spark-concerns-from-locals/
2. The Examiner, “Tasmanian Greens Demand Inquiry Into AI Data Centre Growth.” https://www.examiner.com.au/story/9295331/tasmanian-greens-demand-inquiry-into-ai-data-centre-growth/
3. The Examiner, “Firmus Blindsided as Tamar Valley Rallies Over AI Factory Plans.” https://www.examiner.com.au/story/9295847/firmus-blindsided-as-tamar-valley-rallies-over-ai-factory-plans/
4. Pulse Tasmania, “Firmus Lodges Plans for Second Tasmanian AI Factory at Bell Bay.” https://pulsetasmania.com.au/news/firmus-lodges-plans-for-second-tasmanian-ai-factory-at-bell-bay/
5. Data Center Dynamics, “Firmus Targets 288MW Data Campus in Tasmania.” https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/firmus-targets-288mw-data-campus-in-tasmania/
6. The Urban Developer, “Firmus Plots AI Supercampus for Contentious Tassie Mill Site.” https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/firmus-technologies-ai-factory-bell-bay-gunns-pulp-mill-tasmania
7. Happy Mag, “Tasmania's Next Big Export Might Not Be Whisky, Tourism or Hydro Power.” https://happymag.tv/tasmania-ai-factory-zone-firmus-technologies/
8. Capital Brief, “'Nobody Cares About Energy Efficiency': The Evolution of Firmus' Green Credentials (a more sceptical look at the company's shifting efficiency claims).” https://www.capitalbrief.com/article/nobody-cares-about-energy-efficiency-the-evolution-of-firmus-green-credentials-bd09bdde-86c6-453e-b019-dbe21717c8d5/
9. Tasmanian Times, “TasICT Says Tasmania Needs Clear Rules for Responsible AI Infrastructure.” https://tasmaniantimes.com/2026/06/tasitc-says-tasmania-needs-clear-rules-for-responsible-ai-infrastructure/

Tasmanian Parliament and Government

1. Parliament of Tasmania, “Debates of the House of Assembly (Hansard), 20 May 2026 — official transcript including a Firmus exchange and the Premier's response on transparency commitments.” https://www.parliament.tas.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0029/105986/HA-Wednesday-20-May-2026-Draft-Full-Text.pdf
2. Tasmanian Greens MPs, “Greens' Motion for AI Answers Passes Parliament.” https://tasgreensmps.org/media-releases/greens-motion-for-ai-answers-passes-parliament/