Amsterdam not allowing any more data centers in the municipality

Amsterdam has decided to allow no more data centers or any expansions of data centers in the municipality. “Space in Amsterdam is scarce, not just for home construction, but also for the electricity network. The city will use physical space and space on the electricity grid for other priorities, like urban development,” the municipality said in a statement.

Only projects that have been submitted before December 28, 2023, or projects that are already into latter stage negotiations will be eligible, alderman Zita Pels wrote to the city council.

According to her, data centers are not only big, but they also require a lot of power. “We do not have the space necessary for this at this time,” Pels said.

The decision follows a temporary stop that was announced at the end of 2023. Four current applications, that were submitted before the deadline, still fall under the “old regime.” The municipality has said that it will look into the options for more data centers again in 2030.

Amsterdam has various data centers in the city. The biggest ones are near the Science Park and by the Amstel III. Conversations are also being had with the companies behind the data centers with regard to efforts to make the centers more sustainable when it comes to heat and coal.