The Amsterdam Metropolitan Area will temporarily no longer allow the construction of new data centres, which it says are having a heavy footprint on available space and on the energy grid. The Amsterdam region has the most data centres in the world. According to calculations from network manager Liander, data centres will make up 37 percent of the metropolitan area’s energy consumption by 2030.
The region is now developing a new policy around the circular economy, with the aim of moving away from a reliance gas and using more 'green' electricity. It believes the residual heat from data centres should become available free of charge for heating needs in Amsterdam. The region expects to adopt a new policy by the end of this year. Ongoing permit applications will be processed but new permit applications for the construction or expansion of data centres will only be considered once the new policy has been adopted.
