The recent piece by Harry Goddard, the Chief Executive Officer of Deloitte, adds to the growing list of concerning media reports that frame the huge expansion of data centres as a risk-free opportunity. These commentaries don’t take into account the potential negative effects (“Instead of limiting the number of data centres, we need to construct more in order to encourage more use of sustainable energy”, Business Opinion, 14th October). The writer proposes that a strong demand framework needs to be created and that renewable energy and grid growth should facilitate more data centre growth, in spite of the technical, environmental and legal dilemmas associated with it.
The piece does mention a useful piece of information from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) about the recent decrease in emissions. However, it fails to acknowledge that the EPA has expressed serious doubts about the state’s capacity to fulfil its climate responsibilities unless every government department implements disciplined climate measures.
Currently, Ireland is markedly divergent within Europe, with power consumption by data centres being more than 20% (significantly more than the European Union average of 2%) and this is predicted to rise to 30% by 2030. Lowering — not increasing — the demand for energy is a central element of government policy regarding energy security and climate. The Climate Change Advisory Council has noted that adhering to legally-imposed carbon budgets will be increasingly challenging if the rate of data centre connections stays constant.
The writer proposes that the solution should be an increase in data centres, because they could “spur the growth of renewable energy”. The writer generously accepts that the surge in demand may not be “desired” but insists that “it is an inevitable development” packed with “planned advantages” due to “advancements in AI”.
Although it’s apparent that AI and data centre advancement could be a goldmine for significant global consultancies, it raises queries about the benefits of such a setup for communities which presently rely on polluting, high-cost gas, coal and oil. Will the greening of Irish society through renewables and the grid come second place to the requirements of the data centre sector?
Considering that data centre corporations are permitted to largely disregard or dismiss their lawful environmental obligations, it raises the question of the signal being sent to other industries that are contributing to pollution. Moreover, how can we expect society to advocate for energy reformation that seems to primarily benefit a specific industry?
These are tangible inquiries, not merely theoretical. The government has taken significant measures to mitigate the impact of our notably carbon-heavy electricity system. However, the introduction of new data centres is exacerbating the problem. Recent statistics indicate that the surge in demand from data centres for electricity in 2023 overshadowed the total renewable energy added to the supply network last year. Alarmingly, data centres have so far ignited continuous contamination due to a growing dependency on fossil fuel and the gas network. Experts predict this circumstance will take a turn for the worse.
In conclusion, our energy infrastructure and the carbon reduction commitments were not originally designed to cater to the needs of a single industry.
JERRY MacEVILLY,
Policy Director,
Friends of the Earth,
Dublin 2.