Another data centre has been approved in west London despite concerns over the facility’s demand for electricity and water.

Hounslow Council voted in favour of building a data centre on a 12.2-acre brownfield site at the Haslemere Heathrow Estate earlier this month.

The decision came just weeks after Ealing Council gave the go-ahead for another huge data centre in Southall.

The planning committee in Hounslow discussed the facility’s demand of high-capacity power connection, which would be equivalent to the same needs of tens of thousands of homes.

However, after hearing that the Haslemere Heathrow Estate scheme would import energy from outside Hounslow’s boundaries in the Laleham Grid Supply Point, the plans were approved.

With several more data centres planned for the area, questions have been raised about how local water supplies will be affected and where they currently are in the capital.

Where are the new data centres?

London is already by far the UK’s biggest data centre hub.

According to the Greater London Authority, there were 99 operational data centre sites in the capital as of November last year, with another 26 in the planning pipeline.

Around 80% of the UK’s data centre capacity is located in London.

But the rapid expansion is putting increasing pressure on the capital’s electricity and water infrastructure.

The latest Hounslow development would be built at the Haslemere Heathrow Estate.

Plans for the site were approved by the council’s planning committee, despite concerns about the amount of electricity the facility could require.

Affinity Water, which supplies parts of Hounslow, told MPs in May that some data centres were seeking up to 3 million litres of water a day. That’s roughly equivalent to the peak water demand of 3,500 homes.

The developer will now have to submit a strategy aimed at reducing the amount of water used during the centre’s operation.

The Greater London Authority had previously warned that the Hounslow proposal did not fully comply with the London Plan, highlighting concerns about its transport impact as well as its high water and energy demands.

Meanwhile, Ealing Council approved plans last month for a 52,000 square metre data centre on Bridge Road in Southall.

Ealing Council said electricity capacity was a ‘recognised issue across west London’ and confirmed the Bridge Road development would have to source its electricity outside the existing grid capacity.

Both the Ealing and Hounslow developments still need to go through a Stage 2 referral to the mayor of London.

Ofgem has also identified data centres as a major driver of growing demand on the UK’s electricity grid.

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