Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the UK’s energy (a) policy and (b) regulatory frameworks support the sustainable growth of data centres by (a) providing long-term clarity on low-carbon power generation and flexibility technologies, (b) introducing planning and connection guidance for new data centres, (c) reviewing private wire network regulations, (d) enabling timely and strategic electricity network connections, (e) reducing non-domestic electricity costs and (f) coordinating infrastructure planning across (i) land, (ii) water and (iii) energy systems.

The AI Energy Council, chaired by the DESNZ and DSIT Secretaries of State, is working to understand the future energy demand of data centres and the policy and regulatory options for enabling faster connections that are compatible with Clean Power 2030. It has five working groups, co-led with partners from industry and academia, respectively considering demand forecasting, grid connections, sustainability, AI opportunities and corporate PPAs in more detail. In terms of infrastructure planning more broadly, the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan provides detail on this for 2025-30, while the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan currently being developed will do so for 2030-50.