AI data centres are booming in Australia - but at what cost? — SkimNews
Get the Tech newsletter
Daily tech — startups, AI labs, chips, the launches that shape the next decade. Free.
- Australia has 162 data centres, with 90 more planned and more than A$155bn (£80bn) in investment lined up.
- Sam Altman said Australia could become the world's data-centre capital because of its land, political stability, Five Eyes security alliance, skilled workforce and renewable-energy potential.
- Cloud Carrier plans to build three gas-fired power stations about 90 minutes from Sydney to supply an existing data centre and two future facilities.
- Australian Energy Market Operator says data-centre energy demand could triple nationwide by 2030, while the Climate Council says NSW power prices could be 26% higher by 2035 without new renewable generation and storage.
- Anthony Albanese announced in July that large-scale data centres will face new legal obligations, but the legislation planned for 2027 will apply only to new proposals, not existing or under-construction projects.
- Greenpeace Australia Pacific found that none of the data-centre operators it analysed adequately proved their claims that the boom is driving renewable-energy growth.
Why it matters: Residents around Lane Cove face the sharpest local trade-off: if four proposed centres are approved, half the industrial park's businesses would have to relocate, while one site would be 16m from a home. Sydney Water says centres could use up to 25% of Sydney's drinking water by 2035; Albanese's 2027 obligations cover only new proposals, not existing or under-construction projects.
Ask SkimNews
