Social Democrats propose public register of 'key information' on data centres

The register would include information about a data centre’s size, location, energy and water consumption, and how efficient it is in using resources

According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), data centres collectively accounted for 23% of Ireland’s total metered electricity consumption in 2025. File picture

The Social Democrats have called for legislation to be introduced that would mandate a public register of data centres setting out their locations, carbon emissions, energy requirements, and water usage.

The party has published a bill to set up a register that would require data centres to publish “key information” about their use.

According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), data centres collectively accounted for 23% of Ireland’s total metered electricity consumption in 2025. Figures from EirGrid stated that it could increase to 30% by 2030.

Entitled Data Centre Transparency Bill 2026, Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore said that information would include the centre’s size, location, its energy and water consumption, and how efficient they are in using resources.

“This is a really, really important piece of legislation because we have seen the amount of data centres in this country just grow so rapidly over the last 10 years, to the point that they’re now using 23% of our electricity use,” Ms Whitmore said.

“Yet that growth has largely been shrouded in secrecy and in spin from Government about data centres, so it’s important that the facts and figures are on the table, that policymakers and lawmakers know what those facts and figures are and utilise them in the development of policy.

“But also that the public are aware exactly of the resources that data centres use and the implicit cost of these data centres to the State; this is something that actually is required under EU legislation.” 

In 2023, an EU directive introduced mandatory public reporting requirements for data centres with a power demand above 500 kW. Ms Whitmore claimed that only 18 of the 123 data centres in Ireland have complied with the directive.

“Data centres are completely ignoring that requirement, and that’s why it’s really important that we have domestic legislation that gives the Government some control over what data centres are required to do,” the Wicklow TD said.

She also said data centres see the Government as a “soft touch”, and that data centres should not be given a “free rein”.

The TD also disputed claims that data centres enable about 875,000 jobs in Ireland, describing it as a “ridiculous suggestion”. “Essentially, they’re accounting for anybody that opens their laptop and logs on,” she added.