Environment & Climate
Planned UK data centers could emit 4.5 million tonnes of carbon annually, analysis finds
Projections show two proposed facilities relying on on-site gas power would generate more carbon than ExxonMobil's entire UK operations.
The short version
- Analysis by non-profit Foxglove estimates two proposed data centers in Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire will produce over 4.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions per year once fully operational.
- To bypass long waiting times to connect to the national grid, both facilities plan to build their own on-site gas-fired power stations.
- The UK government rejected the calculations as misleading, while climate campaigners warned the fast-tracked projects jeopardize national net-zero targets.
Key facts
- Non-profit Foxglove calculated that the planned Wapseys Wood and Quest Park data centers will use 1.3GW of power and produce more than 4.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually.[The Guardian]
- For comparison, energy think tank Ember reported that ExxonMobil emitted 3.9 million tonnes of carbon in the UK in 2023.[The Guardian]
- Both data centers plan to build on-site gas-fired power plants due to grid connection backlogs, which currently include 315 data centers totaling 73GW of demand.[The Guardian]
- The projects are among the first data centers fast-tracked under the government's nationally significant infrastructure project (NSIP) regime, bypassing local planning authorities.[The Guardian]
What remains uncertain
- The government claims the emissions figures are inaccurate because they assume 100% capacity from day one, while Foxglove and Friends of the Earth defend the assumption as standard industry practice for modeling peak potential load.[The Guardian]
- It remains uncertain how the rapid expansion of data centers will fit within the UK's legal carbon targets, though the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero maintains multiple pathways exist.[The Guardian]