Inside London's data centres boom and the fierce local battles being waged around their future

London has quietly become Europe’s largest data centre market.

The capital houses 247 data centres with at least 26 major developments in the pipeline, according to Greater London Authority (GLA) data.

Yet behind the capital’s digital infrastructure dominance lies a battle for the supply of the land, water, and electricity needed to tackle London’s housing crisis.

The giant server houses have attracted criticism over high energy and water use, noise pollution and letting off harmful fumes, but few understand what the data centre boom means for the capital.

In fact, few truly know what data centres do. Yet many know why they don’t want one in their backyard.

Save Brick Lane protest outside Truman Brewery

LDRS

Housing Secretary Angela Rayner has waved through several data centre developments, including sprawling campuses in Abbot’s Langley and Buckinghamshire, but critics say her embrace of Britain’s digital revolution is taking its toll on housing.

According to research by the GLA, parts of the capital’s grid in Hillingdon, Hounslow, and Ealing have already reached full capacity, halting new housing developments. The power demand of energy-intensive sectors, like the data centre industry, could see demand rocket by more than 600% by 2050, placing strain on the grid.

Tensions have reached breaking point in Tower Hamlets when Andy Burnham’s government gave the green light for the Truman Brewery data centre project. There are some 28,000 families on the council waiting list for social housing, so news of another data centre on a site which could have accommodated 350 homes has sparked pushback.

“It’s a lost opportunity for a serious amount of housing,” says local campaigner Jonathan Moberly, member of the Save Brick Lane campaign. “You could activate the street by bringing housing into it, or kill it off for good by putting a data center there.”

According to campaigners, the proposed 5.2MW facility, likely to be operated by US giant Digital Realty, will suck up enough electricity to power 15,000 homes.

City traders based just minutes away will have access to ultra fast internet for high frequency trading.

However, local residents won’t benefit from that - although the project, put forward by property owners Truman Estates and Zeloof LLP, is also delivering offices, a supermarket, a cinema and a number of homes.

Mr Moberly says that while ‘Big Tech’ promises plenty of new jobs, the reality is the majority of those are in the construction phase, with the average data centre only requires between 12 to 15 staff across a week.

Faysal Ahmed

The London Standard

The impact on football could “erase the character and heritage” of an area like Brick Lane, says Faysal Ahmed, councillor for Spitalfields and Bangla Town.

He received more than 7,000 objections from residents who fear for the future of the area - widely known as the curry capital of Europe.

“We, the council, the Mayor, and this administration are firmly opposed to it, and so are the local businesses. Please listen to us, the residents, and review this decision and reverse it,” he said.

Ms Rayner has said she has seen “no detailed evidence” on whether an alternative, housing-led development was feasible and the government said its decision was in line with the recommendations of the independent planning inspector. It claimed the harm to the area’s heritage will be “minor” and that the facility will help crackdown on anti-social behaviour in and among the derelict buildings, while highlighting the need for more data centres and the economic benefits that come with them.

Living alongside these server houses can also pose serious concerns about quality of life. In Acton, families have said they feel “betrayed” by plans for a data centre facility on the Frogmore Estate, operated by Kao Data. Olivia Law-Zygadlo, a local parent, told the Standard she was concerned about the impact on her son’s severe breathing difficulties.

Olivia Law-Zygadlo and her 2-year-old son

The London Standard

Campaigners say data centres have a large impact on air quality - just one of Mr Moberly’s concerns. Every month diesel generators stored at data centre facilities are required to be tested, sending plumes of toxic gases into the air.

Some data centres, like Kao Data, are trialling the use of vegetable fat generated from restaurant waste, which is a cleaner fuel with minimal greenhouse emissions.

Other residents allege that they were not properly consulted ahead of local planning decisions.

“We’ve been walked right over,” claims Hazel Garcia, who lives opposite the existing data centre operated by Vantage. She claims low-frequency humming from the facility and heat generation as just two of the problems that residents are facing. She fears another facility would only add to their anguish.

But Adam Nethersole, the senior vice president of sales and marketing at Kao Data, insists that the operator wants to be a “positive neighbour” and a “responsible operator.”

“We are taking a derelict industrial estate and we are going to turn it into a future-proof industry, which will provide inward investment, jobs, commerce and enterprise for the next 20 years,” he explained, adding that the operator is building a community centre and community gardens for the neighbourhood.

He said Kao Data is trying “to do everything” it can to “be as transparent and open with the community as [it] possibly can be.”

In response to concerns about water, Mr Nethersole said the data centre will run on a closed-loop, glycol-based system, minimising water usage concerns.

In a statement, Vantage Data Centers said: “LHR2 was subject to full planning scrutiny and public consultation through the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation, the independent planning authority for the area, and has been delivered in line with the permissions granted. We operate the facility in accordance with applicable planning, environmental and regulatory requirements, including those relating to noise, air quality and back-up power.”

Ealing Council added that it was “listening to residents in North Acton” and was working with the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation to address the issues raised.

Residents are angered by the proposed data centre on Brick Lane

Getty

Experts have warned of the “data centre heat island effect”, when air-cooled data centres emit waste heat into the surrounding area, with some reports claiming local temperatures can rise by up to 9C. Such an increase is a stark prospect for Tower Hamlets, which is already recorded by Friends of the Earth as one of London’s warmest neighbourhoods.

Plans to put excess heat into distribution networks has been mooted by the industry, but Owen Espley, community campaigns manager at Global Action Plan, explains that London lacks the “joint up system” to facilitate this. He adds that air-cooling can drive up electricity use.

In districts like Slough - the world’s second largest data centre hub - standard water-cooling methods can consume up to 35 litres of water per second, the equivalent of the daily demand of 3,500 households, according to Affinity Water.

But the tech sector rejects claims that data centres are sucking up vital water and electricity supplies.

Sophie Greaves, associate director for digital infrastructure at TechUK, says that planning applications all join the same queue for grid connection, with no priority given to data centres.

She noted that a survey carried out by TechUK showed that half of UK data centres employ waterless or closed-loop cooling systems. Nationally, the sector accounts for just 0.2% of non-household water usage in England - less than the volume lost daily through pipe leaks.

Grow Places, development manager for the Truman Brewery, said it agreed with the decision to approve a data centre.

Tom Larsson, CEO of Grow Places, said: "We are pleased to confirm that the Secretary of State has agreed with the Inspector's recommendations, granting planning permission for the three appeals, together with listed building consent, at the Truman Brewery.

“This is a significant milestone and a testament to the efforts of everyone involved in this unique project. The Truman Brewery, Brick Lane, Spitalfields and Banglatown are ever evolving places, as all cities are, and we are proud to continue supporting this place growth.”

With vacancy rates for server space hovering around 7%, according to CBRE, demand for data centres shows no sign of cooling down.

But as they spread across London, the debate and disquiet in affected communities is only likely to get louder.