Subscribe to Our Digest
ABB’s microgrid-ready UPS architecture integrates battery storage, renewables, and gas generation for resilience and flexibility for AI data centers.
ABB has introduced the HiPerGuard 34.5kV, a new version of its breakthrough medium voltage UPS that enables AI data centers to connect directly to the grid without voltage conversion, improving efficiency and simplifying infrastructure. With this latest innovation, HiPerGuard’s microgrid-ready architecture enables flexible integration of battery storage, gas, and renewables with grid support and peak shaving capabilities.
Global data center demand is forecast to rise from 80 GW in 2024 to reach around 220GW by 2030. Workloads are expected to account for around 70 percent of this growth. ABB is working with AI leaders and data center operators to engineer a new class of data center power infrastructure through integrated, end‑to‑end power systems designed for flexibility, reliability, efficiency, and scalable performance at AI scale.
“For the first time, with ABB technology, AI data centers can connect directly to the grid at 34.5kV, cutting conversion energy losses and reducing infrastructure complexity,” said Sebastien Surply, Critical Power Leader for ABB’s Smart Power Division. “Our collaborations with the innovators driving AI infrastructure revealed a fundamental need for greater flexibility without complexity. HiPerGuard’s latest iteration delivers both, enabling facilities to scale with the power efficiency and flexibility that drives AI compute forward.”
Data centers will leverage the HiPerGuard 34.5kV’s microgrid-ready architecture to combine distributed power generation with battery energy storage. The system accommodates diverse energy sources – gas turbines, renewable generation, and grid connection – providing operators with flexibility to optimize resilience and efficiency. Integration with ABB’s Power Exchanger technology enables battery management and grid support functions, allowing data center operators to perform peak shaving and frequency regulation services.
Operating at 98 percent efficiency, HiPerGuard’s direct 34.5kV connection reduces voltage conversion losses, valued at approximately $880,000 per year for every one percent efficiency gain in a 100 MW AI data center. The simplified architecture also reduces copper cabling requirements substantially. And, with 20-25 percent less footprint and fewer devices and cabling runs, operators gain both space and significant infrastructure cost savings.
The system’s repeatable and flexible architecture supports incremental capacity expansion through parallel configurations up to 25MW, enabling operators to grow without complete infrastructure overhauls. As AI workloads intensify and power requirements shift, the system’s plug-and-play converter design allows rapid adaptation and integration of emerging technologies.
ABB announced the introduction of HiPerGuard 34.5kV at Data Center World Washington 2026, where HiPerGuard was also recognized by UL Solutions as the first product of its kind to achieve UL 9540, the industry’s highest energy storage standard. The HiPerGuard portfolio is both IEC and UL Certified, UL 1741 and UL 9540, and supports voltage levels from 4.16 kV to 34.5 kV. The HiPerGuard 34.5kV will be available for order in summer 2026.
ABB’s HiPerGuard installed base is growing strongly across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, including major deployments at Applied Digital’s 400 MW and 300 MW AI data center campuses in North Dakota.
More information about the HiPerGuard portfolio from ABB