MicroLink Data Centers · Boston Wastewater Heat Recovery
Prepared 18 May 2026 / Sites Under Review / Working Document

Two wastewater sitesunder technical review

A working summary of the two wastewater treatment plants MicroLink is reviewing for a containerised liquid cooled heat recovery deployment in greater Boston. Both sites carry the technical characteristics we look for in a host partnership.

Site one
Deer Island
MWRA · Boston Harbor
Site two
Greater Lawrence
GLSD · North Andover
Compute scale
2 to 20 MW IT
Containerised, liquid cooled
Heat export
65 °C [149 °F]
Warm water, Loop 3
Status
Under review
Technical assessment phase
00 Frame
MicroLink builds containerised liquid cooled data centers that export waste heat at 65 °C [149 °F] into a host facility's existing thermal infrastructure. We are reviewing two wastewater treatment plants in the greater Boston region. Both sites carry the technical characteristics that make heat recovery work: anaerobic digestion at scale, year round thermal demand, and an operator with a published decarbonisation roadmap. This document summarises what each site offers and how our architecture fits.
Section 01 · The plants

The two plantsat a glance

Same MicroLink architecture in our containers. Two wastewater operators with different scale, different geography, different counterparty shape. Both technically credible for a heat recovery partnership.

Site 01 · Under review
Deer IslandTreatment Plant
MWRA · Winthrop · Boston Harbor

The second largest wastewater treatment plant in the United States. Twelve egg shaped anaerobic digesters. A year round high temperature hot water thermal loop already in place. The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority's flagship operational asset, with a CHP modernisation programme in design.

Average flow
1,360ML/d
[360 MGD], 43 communities, ~2.5M people
Digesters
12 eggsmesophilic
~35 °C [95 °F], 11.4 ML [3 M gal] each
Thermal loop
23 to 30MWth avg
~81 MWth peak design, biogas fed CHP today
Electrical load
~18MW avg
Eversource via Harbor Electric Energy, 115 kV submarine cable
Renewables on site
~3.8MW
2 wind, 2 × 1 MW outfall hydro, 736 kWp solar
Decarb programme
$20MMassDEP grant
Oct 2024, solar + wind + CHP modernisation

MWRA's published decarbonisation programme is aligned to Massachusetts net zero by 2050. The Authority reported 41 percent emissions reduction below the 2006 baseline in its 2023 GHG inventory, and the October 2024 MassDEP Climate Protection and Mitigation Trust grant funds the CHP modernisation in design today.

The thermal loop already exists. Twelve egg shaped digesters operating at ~35 °C [95 °F] with year round heating demand, plus building heat and process heat across the 60 acre [24 hectare] plant footprint. Our 65 °C [149 °F] warm water output enters that loop at the right temperature for digester heating and building hydronic return.

Site footprint allows for a 2 to 5 acre [0.8 to 2 hectare] containerised pad near the south parking area, adjacent to existing solar PPAs and within reach of the existing thermal plant building for a short Loop 3 termination.

What we are reviewing
  • Thermal loop integration alongside the CHP modernisation design
  • Eversource HEEC headroom on the 115 kV submarine cable for incremental compute load
  • NPDES permit pathway for novel heat recovery co-location
  • Island access logistics for containerised construction and ongoing operations
  • Sea level rise resilience alongside the existing 580 piled foundation engineering
Site 02 · Under review
Greater LawrenceSanitary District
GLSD · North Andover · Merrimack River

A regional plant on the Merrimack River serving six communities, with four anaerobic digesters, source separated organics co-digestion already operating, and a 3.2 MWe biogas combined heat and power plant commissioned in 2019. A mainland site with an established energy programme.

Average flow
114ML/d
[30 MGD], 6 communities incl. Salem NH
Digesters
4 + co-digestmesophilic
"Organics to Energy" food waste programme
Thermal demand
2 to 4MWth
Digester heat, building heat, biogas pre-treat
CHP installed
3.2MWe
2 × 1.6 MW Caterpillar, commissioned 2019
CHP economics
$2.8M/yr saved
$28M project, $10M incentives, 6.5y payback
Distance from Boston
50km
[30 mi] north via I-93, mainland access

GLSD operates one of the most established wastewater energy programmes in New England. The plant exports power to the grid under a National Grid net metering arrangement, runs source separated organics co-digestion, and has reduced GHG emissions roughly 20 percent since CHP commissioning in 2019.

The energy programme is the entry point. Our 65 °C [149 °F] warm water output enters the existing thermal balance at the digester jacket loop or the building heat loop, working alongside the existing CHP and biogas infrastructure. The counterparty already operates as an energy producer, not only a wastewater operator.

Plant campus on the Merrimack offers room around the Riverside Pump Station for a 2 to 5 acre [0.8 to 2 hectare] containerised pad. National Grid is the serving electrical utility.

What we are reviewing
  • Thermal balance fit with the existing CHP and digester jacket loops
  • National Grid interconnection capacity for 2 to 5 MW incremental compute load
  • Pad acreage and access on the Riverside Pump Station campus
  • Net metering and energy export alongside the existing GLSD arrangement
  • Long term scaling path beyond first deployment as Organics to Energy expands
Section 02 · The thermal fit

How our architecture meets the host loopat each plant

Our containerised deployment exports waste heat continuously at 65 °C [149 °F] into the host's existing thermal infrastructure. Each plant offers a different thermal envelope. Both fit the architecture.

Figure 01 · Thermal envelope at each site
Continuous heat absorbedagainst compute load
Compute IT load produces roughly equivalent waste heat output. Each plant's continuous thermal envelope sets the deployment range for that site.
MWTH ABSORBABLE · YEAR ROUND 80 MWth 40 MWth 20 MWth 5 MWth 0 DEER ISLAND MWRA · Boston Harbor 23 to 30 avg 81 peak design ceiling EXISTING LOOP GREATER LAWRENCE GLSD · North Andover 2 to 4 CO-DIGEST MICROLINK IT LOAD deployment envelope 2 MW 5 MW 10 MW 20 MW · top
Source · MWRA published design, CDM Smith / BioCycle, DOE CHP TAP for GLSD Method · Continuous absorbable, year round basis
Section 03 · The integration

One architecture, two integrationssame loops, same rejection path

Our three loop architecture in containerised form. Loop 1 to silicon at the cold plate, Loop 2 facility, Loop 3 to host thermal offtake at 65 °C [149 °F]. The dry cooler rejection path is always live, regardless of host loop status.

Figure 02 · Integration schematic
Where the heat goesat each plant
Schematic, not to scale. Loop 3 termination is the only host side difference between the two sites.
DEER ISLAND · MWRA Loop 3 into existing CHP thermal loop MICROLINK 2 to 20 MW CONTAINERISED PUE 1.12 / ERE varies LOOP 3 · 65 °C into host loop 12 EGG DIGESTERS 23 to 30 MWth ~35 °C MESOPHILIC ~81 PEAK DESIGN DRY COOLER 100% rejection always BUILDING HEAT year round CHP PROGRAMME in design GREATER LAWRENCE · GLSD Loop 3 into digester jacket loop MICROLINK 2 to 5 MW CONTAINERISED PUE 1.12 / ERE varies LOOP 3 · 65 °C into jacket loop 4 DIGESTERS + CHP 2 to 4 MWth CO-DIGEST · 35 °C 3.2 MWe CHP 2019 DRY COOLER 100% rejection always EXISTING THERMAL BALANCE CHP + jacket loops
Architecture · Three loop, Loop 3 host termination, dry cooler rejection path always live Hosts are partners
Section 04 · The review

Both sites are under active reviewon the same technical criteria

MicroLink is conducting parallel technical assessment at both plants. The criteria are the same at each site, and the architecture is the same at each site.

Sites under review
Deer Island and Greater Lawrenceparallel technical assessment
MicroLink is reviewing both sites on the same technical criteria: thermal envelope fit, electrical interconnection capacity, parcel and pad confirmation, host loop integration design, and regulatory pathway. Both plants offer the characteristics that make our heat recovery architecture work. The current phase is direct engagement with each plant's operations and engineering teams alongside our internal site engineering work. Both sites carry distinct strengths and a credible path to deployment.
Technical scope
  • Continuous thermal envelope and seasonal load profile
  • Loop 3 termination and host plate heat exchanger sizing
  • Electrical interconnection for incremental compute load
  • Pad, fibre, and construction access
Host partnership
  • Operations and engineering team alignment
  • Permit pathway and regulatory pre-engagement
  • Decarbonisation programme and capital plan alignment
  • Long term scaling beyond first deployment
Working group
  • Municipal and state stakeholders for each site
  • Academic research partner for thermal performance publication
  • Utility engineering for interconnection and rate design
  • Community engagement at each plant's host municipality