Sinn Féin TD for Waterford Conor D. McGuinness has warned that proposed data centre developments are being considered in the absence of a coherent national policy on data centres, energy demand and associated power generation.

Deputy McGuinness has submitted a formal objection to the planning application for a data centre at Kilmeadan and raised the wider issue in the Dáil during a debate on energy policy. Residents in Kilmeaden are opposed to the proposal, which would involve a massive data centre and, effectively, an associated power plant.

Addressing the Dáil, McGuinness said:

“Residents’ concerns must be properly considered as this application is assessed.

“This development could have significant consequences for the local community, the electricity grid and energy costs across the south east.

“If it goes ahead, not only will the scale of electricity demand swallow up a huge amount of additional generation in the south east for many years, including any additional energy from renewable means, but it will push up energy prices for ordinary families.

“This application is being decided against a backdrop of national policy uncertainty. There is no clear framework governing the cumulative impact of large-scale data centres and the power infrastructure required to serve them.

“This is not simply a question of whether one planning application meets individual requirements. The Government must have a credible policy for managing the combined demand created by developments of this scale.

“The proposal raises fundamental questions about how much electricity would be consumed, what that demand would mean for other users and whether additional generation intended to meet the region’s needs could instead be absorbed by one development.

“The Government cannot leave communities and planning authorities to deal with applications of this scale in a national policy vacuum.

“The opposition of local residents, the impact on Kilmeaden and the wider implications for the south east’s electricity supply must be fully taken into account before any decision is made.

“Ordinary households should not be left to carry the cost of a development that could place further pressure on electricity supply and prices.”