A system and method for improving the efficiency of an existing utility plant by constructing a data center nearby and retrofitting the utility plant to provide electric power and cooling to the data center. The system and method for cooling the data center uses a cooling fluid cooled using energy obtained from a heating fluid. The heating fluid is received from the utility plant. The system and method uses the cooling fluid to dissipate heat from electrical components contained in the data center, including a plurality of computer servers.