Data centres to be expanded across UK as concerns mount
Some experts have warned it could drive up prices paid by consumers.More than half of the new data centres would be in London and neighbouring counties.Many are privately funded by US tech giants such as Google and Microsoft and major investment firms.A further nine are planned in Wales, one in Scotland, five in Greater Manchester and a handful in other parts of the UK, the data shows.While the new data centres are mostly due for completion by 2030, the biggest single one planned would come later - a £10-billion AI data centre in Blyth, near Newcastle, for the American private investment and wealth management company Blackstone Group.It would involve building 10 giant buildings covering 540,000 square meters - the size of several large shopping centres - on the site of a former Blyth Power Station.Works are set to begin in 2031 and last for more than three years.Microsoft is planning four new data centres in the UK at a total cost of £330 million, with an estimated completion between 2027 and 2029 - two in the Leeds area, one near Newport in Wales, and a five-storey site in Acton, north west London.And Google is building two data centres, totalling £450m, spread over 400,000 sq m in north east London in the Lee Valley water system.
By some analyses, the UK is already the third-largest nation for data centres behind the US and Germany.The government has made clear it believes data centres are central to the UK's economic future - designating them critical national infrastructure.But there are concerns about their impact, including the potential knock-on effect on people's energy bills.It is not known what the energy consumption of the new centres will be as this data is not included in the planning applications, but US data suggests they are can be considerably more powerful than older ones.Dr Sasha Luccioni, AI and climate lead at machine learning firm Hugging Face, explains that in the US "average citizens in places like Ohio are seeing their monthly bills go up by $20 (£15) because of data centres".She said the timeline for the new data centres in the UK was "aggressive" and called for "mechanisms for companies to pay the price for extra energy to power data centres - not consumers".According to the National System Operator, NESO, the projected growth of data centres in Great Britain could "add up to 71 TWh of electricity demand" in the next 25 years, which it says redoubles the need for clean power - such as offshore wind.
'Fixated with sustainability'
There are also growing concerns about the environmental impact of these enormous buildings.Many existing data centre plants require large quantities of water to prevent them from overheating - and most current owners do not share data about their water consumption.Stephen Hone, chief executive of industry body the Data Centre Alliance, says "ensuring there is enough water and electricity powering data centres isn't something the industry can solve on its own".But he insisted "data centres are fixated with becoming as sustainable as possible", such as through dry-cooling methods.Such promises of future solutions have failed to appease some. In Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, residents are objecting to the construction of a £3.8bn cloud and AI centre on greenbelt land, describing the area as the "lungs" of their home.And in Dublin there is currently a moratorium on the building of any new data centres because of the strain existing ones have placed on Ireland's national electricity provider.In 2023 they accounted for one fifth of the country's energy demand.
Last month, Anglian Water objected to plans for a 435 acre data centre site in North Lincolnshire. The developer says it aims to deploy "closed loop" cooling systems which would not place a strain on the water supply.The planning documents suggest that 28 of the new data centres would be likely to be serviced by troubled Thames Water, including 14 more in Slough, which has already been described as having Europe's largest cluster of the buildings.The BBC understands Thames Water was talking to the government earlier this year about the challenge of water demand in relation to data centres and how it can be mitigated.Water UK, the trade body for all water firms, said it "desperately" wants to supply the centres but "planning hurdles" need to be cleared more quickly. Ten new reservoirs are being built in Lincolnshire, the West Midlands and south-east England.A spokesperson for the UK Government said data centres were "essential" and an AI Energy Council had been established to make sure supply can meet demand, alongside £104bn in water infrastructure investment.Additional reporting by Tommy Lumby
Sign up for our Tech Decoded newsletter to follow the world's top tech stories and trends. Outside the UK? Sign up here.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
27 minutes ago
- BBC News
Wellington cafe owners distraught after two break-ins in a week
A cafe owner has said her family is distraught after the premises were broken into twice in one Akhtar runs the Early Bird Cafe in Wellington Railway Station, which was targeted on Tuesday and again on Thursday, causing more than £1,000 in well as smashed windows, stock was stolen along with a drill, plus loose change and the staff's tips Akhtar said: "The business is like our second home, we spend so much time here and we spend so much effort trying to build it up from scratch. It feels as if someone's attacked my home. It's just too personal." While the family tried to "get on with it" after the first incident, Mrs Akhtar said the second break-in was "a really big blow"."Because it just feels personal now, like someone's got it in for us and keeps coming back," she cafe owner added that her children were very upset by the break-ins and that the family were scared the intruder would return."They think that they're going to attack my home as well," she said."So my daughter didn't sleep all night because she was really really upset." As a result of the damage, the cafe has had to close for two days to get the windows boarded up, turning customers the business had insurance, their premium would cost more than paying for the repairs, and paying out of the profits would hit their ability to cover stock, wages and mortgage payments."I know it's not a large sum of money - but it's money that will help us to pay our rent, pay our mortgages, food costs, and it's just impacted us a lot," Mrs Akhtar said. "We can't take orders from customers so our regular customers have been turned away. We can't afford to keep closing the business."With the family struggling, they received a lifeline in the form of support from a local firm, CS Solicitors, which provided them with new windows. Mrs Akhtar said: "People like CS Solicitors, when they step forward and say to us 'look, you're part of this community and we're willing to help you', it means a lot to us."Without their support we wouldn't have been able to repair the windows as quickly as we hoped." Mohammed Khan from CS Solicitors told the BBC: "These thefts are not simple, petty thefts. These shake livelihoods, they take away the trust we've built within our community and that's something we want to restore as quickly as possible."People need to be aware and come forward if they know something."British Transport Police said it received a report at 07:40 BST on 14 August of a burglary at the cafe."Officers attended and inquiries into the incident are ongoing," a spokesperson said."An investigation has also been launched into an incident of criminal damage at the same location on Tuesday August 12."Anyone with information is asked to contact BTP by texting 61016 or by calling 0800 40 50 40, quoting reference 109 of 14/08/25." Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Reuters
27 minutes ago
- Reuters
Fitch maintains Romania's investment-grade credit rating despite budget strains
Aug 15 (Reuters) - Fitch maintained Romania's coveted investment-grade credit status on Friday, leaving its rating at "BBB-" with a "negative" outlook due to ongoing pressures on the country's finances. "Romania's 'BBB-' rating is supported by EU membership and related capital inflows that support income convergence and external finances," Fitch said. In May, centrist Nicusor Dan won the presidential election runoff, and the new coalition government has recently pushed through a series of tax hikes and spending measures to try and cut the European Union's largest budget deficit.
Daily Mail
27 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Shocking Ikea flyer from 1985 shows VERY surprising prices... but not everything is what it seems
Swedish homewares giant Ikea is a household name and somehow, 40 years later after their first store opened in the U.S., some of their most popular furniture is even cheaper. A resurfaced flyer from 1985 has Allen-key enthusiasts agog at the price differences, with some of their most-loved furniture cheaper than what it was decades earlier. Shared to Reddit, the user showed four popular products and the price from the catalogue in comparison to what they are on the Ikea website in 2025. The first was the Billy bookcase - a staple in many houses all around the world. In 1985, the load-bearing piece piece retailed for $82, and now has decreased in price, selling for $69.99. The next piece was the simple Lack side table, selling for $25 in 1985. In 2025, the loved-item is retailing now for $9.99. A Klippan loveseat 40 years ago was a tad puffier, but a more streamlined model is now almost $100 cheaper, at $299. Lastly, the catalogue showed an armchair for $148, with the Poäng chair now only $69. The furniture giant pointed out their price cuts in an advertisement published in 2015, which celebrated 30 years of the store being in America and showed off their low prices. While the prices have risen in the last 10 years, they are still lower than the 1985 prices. Despite the cheaper prices, many users chimed in declaring the quality of the furniture is far worse in 2025. 'Surprised how everyone's complaining that IKEA furniture is made more cheaply now than it used to be,' commented one user. 'Like yeah, sure it is, but how many companies have made their product intentionally worse over the years while ALSO doubling or tripling the price? The fact that prices haven't changed much shows at least some integrity on their part.' 'I agree. And while IKEA doesn't make the most durable products on earth, they definitely still make better stuff than comparably-priced products you get at other stores (Amazon, Walmart, etc),' chimed in another. 'You can still get a decent, weighty dresser for $100 at IKEA, best alternative you'll find on Amazon is some super thin particle board with those dreadful fabric pseudo-drawers.' Others declared the Swedish furniture had stood the test of time. 'In general I think IKEA suffers from the reputation flat-pack furniture has that is caused by experiences with flat-pack made by literally any company other than IKEA,' one happy customer wrote. They continued: 'I've bought cheap non-IKEA flat-pack desks and cabinets and it's barely cheaper and so much worse. The parts don't fit together as well, the joints aren't as sturdy, and the instructions are inevitably so much harder to follow assembling it.' The showed four popular products and the price from the catalogue in comparison to what they are on the Ikea website in 2025 (pictured) In June, Ikea announced it was closing more of its smaller-format stores in both the UK and California, as the global retail shakeup continues to claim big names. Launched in 2023, the concept aimed to give customers a more tailored experience — with smaller showrooms where shoppers could meet with design specialists, place custom orders, and collect items. However, the company says the format no longer fits customer demand. The Swedish furniture giant confirmed it is shutting down three of its Plan & Order Points locations this month — two in the UK and one in the US. The Liverpool and Stockport stores closed last week, and the final US location in Long Beach is closing its doors forever in June. The first Ikea store opened in 1958 in Sweden, and expanded to the US in 1985. It has grown into a furniture empire and operates approximately 485 locations, 74 being in the US.
