Data Centre Watch Updated 23 October 2026, 17:16 UTC
Data Centre Watch
The local fight over one field is one row in a national rush. This is a rolling, fully sourced record of what changed — the schemes, the planning decisions, the power and water, and the wider world picture.
days under a hosepipe ban
Under a hosepipe ban for 106 days — since 10 July 2026 (as of 23 October 2026).
Affinity Water — Central region (incl. WD5), extended to the East region
11 areas in drought, parts of 4 in severe · reservoirs 54% · the water picture →
Latest
3 entries matching · showing 1–3
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Finland halts Google data-centre work over missing impact assessments
Finland's Licensing and Supervision Authority (LVV) ordered Google's Tuike Finland Oy to suspend preparatory works at its Muhos and Kajaani (Otanmäki) sites — part of a €13bn northern-Finland build — after 330 hectares of forest were felled at Muhos without a completed environmental impact assessment. The Guardian's 22 October investigation put the clearance at about 250,000 trees at Muhos and an estimated 150,000 more at Otanmäki, with the topsoil stripped and brown water running into a stream that feeds the Oulujoki river. Enforcement and a fine may follow: Google's country manager has apologised, the prime minister has called it a 'cold shower', and a petition for tighter rules and a compensation fee has passed 93,000 signatures. Separately, the plan's power draw (reportedly up to half of the Loviisa nuclear plant's output) is raising electricity-price concerns in Finland and Estonia.
Why it matters: A regulator stopping the diggers — the 'assess it first' argument, actually enforced.
Source: The Guardian [C]
Changes (3)
- — Guardian investigation: about 250,000 trees felled at Muhos and an estimated 150,000 at Otanmäki; topsoil stripped, brown water reaching the Oulujoki; 93,000-signature petition; the prime minister calls it a 'cold shower'.
- — Added the power-price angle: local and Estonian electricity-price concern over the plan's grid draw.
- — First filed.
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Oracle's 2.45GW 'Project Jupiter' hits a force-majeure notice
Oracle issued a force-majeure notice over power delays at its New Mexico campus (2.45GW, for OpenAI's Stargate), and is trucking compressed gas to sites in Utah and Texas — delivered gas costs about four times pipeline gas — while it waits for a delayed pipeline. On 15 October Oracle pressed FERC again to approve the 'Green Chile' gas pipeline (about 400m cubic feet a day, feeding Bloom fuel cells), warning that further delay 'threatens the operational schedule of Project Jupiter'; the line's in-service date has slipped to February 2027.
Why it matters: When power is late it is now a contractual event — the physical bottleneck becoming a financial one.
Source: Reuters / remio [C]
Changes (2)
- — Added Oracle's fresh FERC letter pressing for the Green Chile gas pipeline, now slipped to February 2027.
- — First filed.
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Oracle's 1.3GW Wisconsin campus delayed as grid review restarts
State regulators withdrew the transmission application's completeness finding after 564 revisions were filed, resetting the clock and pushing grid connection — and customer delivery — past 2027. Morgan Stanley now warns full power may not arrive until October 2028 (downside: spring 2029).
Why it matters: Even a gigawatt-scale AI campus is now gated by the grid and its paperwork, not capital.
Source: TechBriefe [C]
Changes (2)
- — Morgan Stanley: full power may not arrive until October 2028 ('Project Lighthouse'); downside case runs to spring 2029.
- — First filed.
Watchlist — what lands next
| What | State | When |
|---|---|---|
| Data-centre National Policy Statement (NPS) | Still unpublished; projects already being directed into the NSIP regime without it. | Expected 'shortly after' the Jan 2026 regulations |
| Ofgem 'Curate' data-centre connection reform | Consultation closed 17 Sep 2026; decision pending — commitment fee £237,500–£712,500/MW. | Decision later in 2026 |
| Scotland — hyperscale planning guidance | Parliament agreed no decisions on hyperscale applications until guidance is published. | Guidance expected by December 2026 |
| Draft London Plan — data-centre policy GLE3 | Consultation closed 15 October 2026; responses under consideration. | Next draft / adoption pending |
| National Scheme of Delegation for planning functions (SI 2026/854) | Standardises which applications go to officers vs committee; non-compliant committee decisions open to judicial review. | In force 31 October 2026 |
| EU data-centre standards and rating scheme | Commission has adopted a data-centre sustainability rating scheme; consultation on minimum performance standards remains open. | Consultation closes 14 December 2026 |
| Environmental Audit Committee report (HC 22) | Inquiry 'Risks and opportunities to the sustainability of data centres in the UK'; report + government response due. | Awaiting publication |
| Three Rivers Local Plan examination | Plan submitted; examination in H1 2027, adoption targeted Sep 2027. | Submission 30 November 2026 |
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Fully sourced, no invented numbers
Every entry names its source and how it is known — verified, a designated claim, our calculation, or a gap. Where a claim is contested, we say so. See all reports & explainers →