The Energy and Climate Change Ministerial Council (ECMC) meets this week with an opportunity to enforce a directive that new Australian data centres fund their own renewable energy.
In launching the Office of Artificial Intelligence earlier this month, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese laid out his expectation that data centres build additional renewables and storage to shield households and other businesses from increased costs.
At ECMC's most recent meeting in May – comprising relevant Federal and State ministers – the Queensland Government was the only jurisdiction not to agree that data centres should be required to match their demand with renewables and storage. That is despite evidence that allowing gas and coal to power data centres would hike up energy prices and increase climate pollution.
The Climate Council's Clouded Future report shows that without urgently putting requirements in place for every new data centre to power itself with renewable energy, wholesale power prices will rise by up to 26 per cent in NSW, 23 per cent in Victoria and 14 per cent in Queensland by 2035.
A new YouGov survey of 1624 Australians also found that 82% of people agreed governments should insist that new data centres pay for additional renewable energy and storage infrastructure that matches their electricity consumption.
Climate Council CEO Amanda McKenzie said:
"Australians in every corner of the nation understand exactly what's at stake and it's important that Energy Ministers representing every corner of the nation have that front of mind when they meet in the coming days.
"Each state and territory must come to the table and put the interests of their communities ahead of the profits of tech giants and fossil fuel corporations.
"The Queensland Government's opposition to clean energy rules is out of step with the people they represent, with our recent polling showing that 80% of Queenslanders want data centres to be required to pay for their own renewable energy."
