Climate body welcomes NSW data centre guidelines

The NSW Government recently announced guidelines requiring data centre investment to be matched with increased investment in renewable energy.

The news has been welcomed by the Climate Council, which is calling on the NSW Government to impose mandatory standards so that data centre proposals that fall short don’t go ahead.

“Australians are rightly asking: where is the power for the data centre boom going to come from? Guidelines like these set us on the path to making sure the answer won’t push up household bills, or climate pollution,” said Climate Council Senior Advisor Ben McLeod.

“The NSW Government should be decisive in shielding its citizens and make these expectations mandatory.”

The Climate Council said the state’s new guidelines brought NSW in line with the Albanese government’s commitment to legislate national standards, despite resistance from Queensland and the Northern Territory.

These federal standards are expected to require data centres to supply their own additional renewable power, no matter where they are built around Australia.

“All states and territories should get on board with similar rules under the proposed national guidelines,” McLeod said.

“Governments must set the bar higher, and require data centres to be powered by new wind, solar and storage, otherwise Australians will pay the price of higher power bills and more climate pollution.”

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