Experts warn: zero coordination for data center growth

There is too little national coordination for the growth of data centers, experts warn. This is evident from a number of examples. Four years ago, one plan put the whole of Flevoland on edge. The proposed arrival of a Facebook data center in Zeewolde initially seemed like an economic opportunity, but quickly grew into a national debate. The enormous amount of space and energy consumption it would require provoked so much resistance that the project was ultimately scrapped. What remained was unrest – and a political reflex.

That reflex came quickly. The national government announced a ban on the largest data centers, the so-called hyperscalers. From then on, they were only allowed to establish themselves in North Groningen and in the northern part of North Holland, where Microsoft and Google are already active. It is precisely there that plans for further expansion are now in place. The rest of the country was locked down.

Research into data centers: not spread out, but concentrated

But that did not solve the problem. Research by NU.nl recently showed that the number of data centers outside these regions will continue to grow in the coming years. Not spread out, but concentrated. New data centers are mainly located in places where there are already many. That makes sense: good connections between them are important. At the same time, it is also a direct result of policy.

Because while the national government is confining hyperscalers to two regions, the province of North Holland is doing something similar with smaller data centers. The provincial data center strategy states that these should mainly be located in existing clusters, particularly around Amsterdam. As a result, policy and practice are accumulating in the same places.

Stijn Grove, director of the Dutch Data Center Association, tells NU.nl that this is unwise. According to him, the effect is that the power grid is further burdened in the most vulnerable places.

No national coordination

The core of the problem: there is no national coordination. There is hardly any consideration of where in the energy system there is still room for new data centers. Decisions are made independently of each other, at different levels of government, with the same result: concentration, overload, and ever-decreasing flexibility. If the Netherlands wants to maintain control of its digital infrastructure, one thing is clear: without a coherent policy, it will be like trying to bail out a sinking ship.