Time for Ireland to choose on data centres

Is the tide turning on data centres in Ireland? South Dublin County Council’s decision to refuse planning permission for Google’s planned expansion of its data centre in Grangecastle has come as a surprise to industry watchers.

After all, there have been several projects greenlit around Dublin over the past couple of years. That includes Amazon’s plans for three new data centres in north Dublin, the development of Profile Park, also in Grangecastle, as a data centre hub and major data centres constructed elsewhere in south county Dublin.

But it isn’t the first time that the council has made a surprise move. It was in the headlines a couple of years ago when proposals to restrict new data centres in the area were included as part of its draft county development plan covering 2022 to 2028.

For a time, it seemed as concerns over infrastructure and potential environmental impacts were winning out. Then the council was forced to walk its position back, on orders from the Government.

Environmental groups have long voiced their objections to the growing footprint of data centres in Ireland, pointing out the potential impact on our carbon emissions and energy security. Data centres accounted for more than 20 per cent of all electricity use in the State last year.

Google’s planned 72,400 square metre expansion drew opposition from groups such as An Taisce, Friends of the Earth and Extinction Rebellion. An Taisce warned the new data centre would put pressure on an already strained electricity grid in the Dublin region.

That was a key factor in its rejection, with the council citing “the existing insufficient capacity in the electricity network (grid) and the lack of significant on site renewable energy to power the data centre” for the refusal.

The trend is clear; people don’t want more data centres putting pressure on the grid. But the demand for those data centres comes as more services move online, fuelled by our expectations of instant access to all our data. Data centres are also playing a role in digitising the economy – something that, paradoxically, is often cited as a way to reduce carbon emissions.

There are clear issues with the development of data centres in Ireland. But some sort of compromise has to be reached.

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Inside Business podcast

Cliff Taylor stands in for Ciarán Hancock on Inside Business this week as the podcast teases out some of the anomalies around inheritance tax in Ireland and weighs suggested reforms that may feature in the budget next month.

Cliff also talks to PwC's Munro O'Dwyer about the case for increasing the absolute cap on tax-relieved pension funds for high earners which currently stands at €2 million as it has done for the past decade.

Highlights this week

• Poisoned chalice: Pilita Clark tells the story of four scientists who decided to take a systematic approach to honing one of working life’s great skills. With workloads heading to burnout levels of busynes, they studied the art of saying no. The outcome: they have no regrets.
• Personal Finance: With mortgage rates on the decline once more – and another cut hopefully due next month - Fiona Reddan looks at options for the spare cash that might give you at the end of the month. Should you boost your savings now that a decent return is finally on offer? Or should you be considering overpaying your mortgage instead?
• Commercial Property: After a summer hiatus, commercial property is back with a bang, as US group Workday selects College Square, the landmark office scheme developed by Pat Crean’s Marlet Property Group, for its new European headquarters office - the largest single office letting to have taken place in the European office market since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
• Technology: Much of the public conversation about artificial intelligence in education has focused on the perils of plagiarism – students using AI tools, such as ChatGPT, to write convincing essays that they pass off as their own, and academic institutions, in turn, deploying AI tools to try to catch these cheats. But, as new technologies including AI break into the mainstream, they also promise to revolutionise learning for the better.

One to Watch

Over seven years after a fire that killed 72 people in London's Grenfell Tower, an inquiry into the tragedy will next week produce its final report in what happened on that tragic day and how, with particular attention paid to materials that were used in the construction of the residential tower block from companies including Ireland's listed insulation specialist Kingspan.

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