\u201cRecent Ofgem analysis highlights an unprecedented surge in demand connection applications, far exceeding even the most ambitious forecasts,\u201d the report reads.<\/p>\n
Mayor S<\/a>a<\/a>diq Khan<\/a> said that data centres are \u201ccritical infrastructure,\u201d and that energy demands will have to be met alongside housing plans.<\/p>\n \u201cThe energy requirements of data centres are colossal, so delivering their expansion at pace alongside London\u2019s other infrastructure needs will require more coordinated planning,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n There are currently 26 data centres in the pipeline in the city. Campaigners warn that they shouldn\u2019t be prioritised over housing.<\/p>\n \u201cThe mayor is right to highlight the \u2018colossal\u2019 energy demands of gigantic new data centres and the serious consequences this will have for everything from our climate to our ability to build desperately needed new homes in London,\u201d said Donald Campbell, director of advocacy at Foxglove<\/a>.<\/p>\n Campbell called on the mayor and the UK government to veto data centres that \u201ccause harm to the places where we live, or drain the resources we all depend upon,\u201d adding that any costs should be \u201cfully borne by the colossally wealthy Big Tech companies which are driving the boom in data centre construction \u2013 neither Londoners, nor the planet, should be left to foot this massive bill.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertising helps fund Big Issue\u2019s mission to end poverty<\/p>\n The new report says demand for data centres is \u201chigh,\u201d but warns that competition for grid connections is already intense in various parts of the city, and that scarcity of land is compounding the problem \u2013 with London\u2019s industrial land vacancy rate sitting at just 3.9%.<\/p>\n \u201cHigh land costs and competition with housing and other industrial sectors make most plots in inner London and zone 2\/3 challenging,\u201d the authors write, adding that this may push new data centre development \u201ctowards the edges of London\u201d.<\/p>\n The report also raises the prospect of a trade-off over water<\/a> supply, warning that if data centre growth outpaces forecasts, potable water \u201ccannot be increased in line with the increase in demands from new residential housebuilding as well as the rapid increase in data centres\u201d \u2013 meaning \u201cone will need to be prioritised over the other\u201d.<\/p>\n These findings echo warnings issued a few years ago by the Greater London Authority. In 2022, the GLA wrote to developers warning that it might have to pause housing developments in three west London boroughs \u2013 Hillingdon, Ealing and Hounslow \u2013 due to a lack of grid capacity. That pause never materialised, but a report released late last year found that data centre construction could delay housing delivery in future.<\/p>\n \u201cLondon is at a critical moment, with energy capacity becoming a real constraint on both housing delivery and wider economic growth,\u201d said James Small-Edwards, chair of the London Assembly Planning and Regeneration Committee, at the time.<\/p>\n London already has some of the worst housing waiting lists in the country. Around 340,000 households are waiting for social housing, according to the most recent figures, and around 183,000 Londoners \u2013 equivalent to at least one in 50 residents \u2013 are currently homeless and living in temporary accommodation<\/a>.<\/p>\n Advertising helps fund Big Issue\u2019s mission to end poverty<\/p>\n Khan and the GLA have said that they want London to be the centre of green data centre construction, promising that it won\u2019t conflict with housing. National Grid has already pledged nearly \u00a33bn investment in London over the next five years to upgrade the capital\u2019s energy network.<\/p>\n \u201cWe support data centres in the right locations, where they deliver real value for residents, meet high standards on sustainability and can support economic growth,\u201d said councillor Monica Hamidi, Ealing Council\u2019s cabinet member for good growth. Ealing is one of the boroughs where data centre construction is fastest. \u201cThat includes commitments to renewable energy, low-impact cooling technologies and making better use of waste heat \u2013 for example through district heating networks.\u201d<\/p>\n But Oliver Hayes, head of campaigns at Global Action Plan<\/a>, questioned the climate credentials of green data centres.<\/p>\n \u201cData centres are being built faster than wind and solar, which means fossil fuels are filling the gap. Worse still, many developers want to power data centres by burning gas on site \u2013 a terrible outcome for London\u2019s air as well as the climate,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo the mayor is right \u2013 a holistic approach is essential. But it must be rooted in the imperative of slashing climate pollution and meeting Londoners\u2019 fundamental needs. Doing so will mean saying no to many data centres, however keen they are to cash in on the AI goldrush.\u201d<\/p>\n Change a vendor\u2019s life.<\/strong><\/p>\n Advertising helps fund Big Issue\u2019s mission to end poverty<\/p>\n Buy from your local Big Issue vendor every week \u2013 and always take the magazine. It\u2019s how vendors earn with dignity and move forward.<\/strong><\/p>\n You can also support online:\u00a0Subscribe to the magazine<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0support our work<\/a>\u00a0with a monthly gift. Your support helps vendors earn, learn and thrive while strengthening our frontline services.<\/strong><\/p>\n Thank you for standing with Big Issue vendors.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cRecent Ofgem analysis highlights an unprecedented surge in demand connection applications, far exceeding even the most ambitious forecasts,\u201d…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1027557,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[7757],"tags":[1942,748,2311,393,728,13581,4884,6333,257,12,53,16,15],"class_list":["post-1027556","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-london","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-britain","tag-climate-change","tag-england","tag-environment","tag-environment-and-community","tag-great-britain","tag-housing","tag-london","tag-news","tag-technology","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116752712257154955","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1027556","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1027556"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1027556\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1027557"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1027556"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1027556"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1027556"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}