The Renewable Energy Association (REA) has launched its Data Centre Coalition which aims to deliver clean power for UK data centres and shape policy on the sector.
It follows more than £10bn of investment in London alone on data centres, with the coalition launching as the UK Government positions AI and data at the heart of economic growth policy.
Discussions at the launch event for the group focused on unlocking scalable clean energy for data centres and AI infrastructure, with panels examining low-carbon capacity delivery, policy and pricing reform.
Speakers said that long grid queues, slow planning, and concern around environmental impacts risked slowing delivery – and models for clean power procurement remained lacking.
The new Data Centre Coalition will develop investable clean-power models, design an integrated national framework for planning, create policy certainty, and provide evidence-based input to government and regulators to enable clean, competitive growth in the UK’s digital infrastructure sector.
Liam King, head of demand connections at Ofgem also commented at the opening meeting on the scale of the challenge ahead, including the connections queue, increasing pressure on system planning, and the need to prioritise projects that deliver strategic value to the UK.
Across many of the conversations at the launch event held at Burges Salmon, the REA added that the sector said “wants to be part of the solution, and there is a real opportunity to demonstrate how data centres can actively support the UK’s clean energy transition”.
Over the coming months the coalition will begin shaping a series of workstreams targeting policy and regulatory asks, reframing the public narrative, and the first steps “towards a more strategic, flexible approach to powering digital infrastructure”, it said.
We will also bring members together to explore the call for evidence from NESO on the demand queue. This is the start of a sustained, practical programme of work, and we look forward to involving many of you as it develops.
Founding members of the coalition include: enfinium, Greenscale, Apatura, Clarke Energy.
REA Chief Executive Trevor Hutchings said:
“On behalf of our 400 members, we felt it was essential to step forward at this pivotal moment. The UK is in a global race to secure data centre investment, and to meet the sector’s rapidly growing energy demand alongside addressing wider sustainability challenges.
“Our Data Centre Coalition provides the collective strength to engage directly at the highest levels of government. It ensures that decisions are informed by the full expertise and evidence from the organisations delivering the infrastructure on which the UK’s digital and economic ambitions depend.”
