Centre for Net Zero reposted this
As a former student of Geography, it was a real pleasure to write for The Geographer, the magazine of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society, on whether AI data centres can be a help or a hindrance for the energy transition. When Centre for Net Zero first published our research on powering AI data centres, we argued that whether data centres become good grid citizens hinges on whether they can be planned, powered and connected in ways that manage grid constraints while delivering wider public benefit. Since then, the landscape has shifted. In Scotland in particular, the Scottish Greens are proposing a temporary, de facto moratorium on all new planning applications. There is global precedent, with temporary pauses used in Ireland and New York, to slow development while policy and regulation catch up. And yet, innovative business models are starting to emerge. In California, PG&E, Rewiring America and Google have launched SHARE — a virtual power plant designed to use household energy assets to help meet rising demand and lower costs. This kind of model is hugely promising, but it has not yet been proven in the UK. That’s despite new evidence on how distributed technology in homes can save households money and reliably free up capacity on the grid. Last week, Centre for Net Zero published results from a randomised controlled trial of solar panels and batteries in low-income and vulnerable homes. We found that households cut electricity bills by 62%, or £681 per year, while grid imports between 16:00 and 20:00 fell by 66%, even in December when there was minimal generation to store. Finding ways of matching hyperscalers and households — through mechanisms like project SHARE — could free up grid capacity, support household electrification, and improve energy affordability for the homes that need it most. Links to the article and research in the comments. More to come from us on this topic later this year. Andy Hackett Ian Goddard Gus Chadney Ignacio Serrano Jenn Humphries