BT centre powering ahead in the Bay.

FIVE giant emergency power generators have now been installed at BT's new internet data centre in Cardiff Bay as the pounds 90m flagship project nears completion.

The two megawatt generators, which would cut in automatically to keep the data centre running in the event of a mains power failure, can together produce enough power to run 300,000 homes in Cardiff.

The generators, built in Belfast, were tested in Ireland before being shipped across the Irish Sea and transported by lorry to Cardiff's Celtic Gateway Business Park and rolled into position in purposebuilt generator bays.

The two data halls, which will house servers for customers worldwide, are also protected by an argonite automatic extinguishing system with more than 200 gas fire extinguishers that would snuff out flames in seconds in the unlikely event of a fire. The 60,000 sq ft building project is in its final stages and the fitting out is about to begin.

John Jones, head of web services for BT Ignite, said the centre, one of the biggest in Europe, was still on target to open for business in January, almost exactly a year after the building work began.