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According to the CSO 2024 report (released June 2025) into metered electricity consumption in Ireland, the percentage of total electricity consumption used by data centres rose to 22% in 2024 from 5% in 2015. This significant demand on the Irish electricity network has, along with other global factors, contributed to sustained pressure on prices for domestic electricity customers. Currently, there are 82 operational data centres in Ireland, with 14 more under construction and planning approval granted for an additional 40 centres.
Data centres are large warehouses filled with servers, storage devices, and networking equipment that store, process, and distribute data.
Similar to a massive digital filing system, data centres are essential for our daily online lives. They are critical for processing and transmitting data, enabling everything from basic internet services to the recent surge in Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools.
For every WhatsApp message we send, every time we use our banking app, or stream a film on Netflix, a piece of information is produced that must be stored and managed within these facilities.
Ireland currently hosts 82 operational data centres, with the vast majority located in the Greater Dublin Area.
As of mid-2025, there are an additional 14 centres under construction, and planning approval has been granted for a further 40 centres.
This represents a potential growth of nearly 50% in the number of facilities, highlighting Ireland's central role in the global digital economy.
Ireland remains an attractive location for data infrastructure for several reasons:
While data centres are not solely responsible for high electricity prices, they are significant "energy users" that place massive demand on the national grid.
According to the CSO 2024 report, electricity consumption by data centres grew by 10% in just one year, reaching 6,969 GWh.
In fact, for the first time in 2024, data centres accounted for more electricity consumption (22%) than urban homes (18%) and rural homes (10%) combined. Grid operator EirGrid estimates this could rise to almost 30% by 2030.
Did You Know?
In just one day, a large data centre can consume as much electricity as the peak demand of a town like Kilkenny (60 MW). To keep these systems cool, they can also require over 500,000 litres of water daily.
The rapid growth of data centres has led to a narrow "generation margin," increasing the risk of power shortages during peak times or periods of low wind generation.
While amber alerts were frequent in 2022, the risk has been mitigated recently by the completion of the 500 MW Greenlink Interconnector and new gas-fired "peaker" plants. However, EirGrid still monitors the system closely, especially as Ireland hit a record peak demand of over 6,000 MW in early 2025.
To manage this, the government is investing over €3 billion through 2030 to upgrade the grid. A de facto moratorium on new data centre connections in Dublin remains in place until 2028 to protect local supply.
The industry is increasingly adopting "circular" energy strategies:
Data centres currently account for about 2.5% of Ireland’s total greenhouse gas emissions. While this is lower than sectors like agriculture, their high electricity usage makes achieving national climate targets more difficult.
Under the Climate Action Plan 2025, Ireland aims for 80% of electricity to come from renewable sources by 2030. In 2024, renewables accounted for 41.3% of supply. The challenge is that as data centres consume more power, the total amount of renewable energy needed to reach that 80% target increases every year.
Did You Know?
Dublin has emerged as the largest data centre cluster in Europe, surpassing traditional hubs like London, Amsterdam, and Frankfurt.
The Irish government and the CRU (Commission for Regulation of Utilities) have introduced stricter principles for data centre development:
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