Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 10 June 2026
11. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment the position regarding the annual usage of electricity by data centres in Ireland, if this is something that is recorded by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44329/26]
View answerHistorical figures for annual and quarterly metered electricity consumption by data centres are formally compiled and published by Central Statistics Office (CSO). According to the CSO, metered electricity consumption by data centres increased from 6,335 Gigawatt hours (GWh) in 2023 to 6,969 GWh in 2024. The percentage share of metered electricity consumption used by data centres rose from 5% in 2015 to 22% in 2024.
EirGrid, as Transmission System Operator (TSO) develops, manages and operates the transmission grid in Ireland. According to EirGrid's All-Island Resource Adequacy Assessment which looks at the balance between electricity demand and supply on the island of Ireland for the next 10 years, data centre and new tech load will account for 35% of Ireland’s national electricity requirement by 2035.
Article 12 of the Energy Efficiency Directive is supplemented by the directly effective delegated Regulation 2024/1364 that requires certain sized data centres to annually report energy and sustainability performance indicators to a confidential EU database on data centres established and operated by the European Commission – indicators include energy consumption and renewable energy use. While my Department currently oversees this ongoing reporting, the Commission is responsible for making it publicly available in an aggregated manner.
The Government is committed to delivering a balanced approach to facilitate sustainable data centre demand and achieving the twin objective of decarbonisation and digitalisation. These commitments have been operationalised through the prioritisation of a range of policy and energy infrastructure planning workstream including increased and unprecedented investment in our grid and expanding our energy generation, with a particular priority on renewable energy sources. The Government’s Large Energy User Action Plan (LEAP) establishes a plan-led pathway for new data centre development, and other strategically significant energy intensive industries, while protecting robust energy security and promoting Ireland’s renewable energy ambitions.
