Australia can boost energy security through data centre development, says CEC

It can employ thousands of workers.

Australia has a major opportunity to strengthen its energy resilience through a national strategy for data centre development, the Clean Energy Council said.

Responding to the Federal Government’s Expectations of Data Centres and AI Infrastructure Developers, CEO Jackie Trad said the country’s pipeline of clean energy projects is ready to meet the sector’s growing demand.

“Clean energy projects employ thousands of workers and support hundreds of local businesses including local manufacturers and steel fabricators,” she said.

“The large energy demands of data centres can help drive the wave of investment that delivers broader energy security across our country and real benefits to regional Australia,” Trad added.

The council welcomed the government’s expectation that data centres secure new energy generation to offset their demand, helping protect households from rising electricity prices.

“Australia’s electricity needs are only increasing as part of a modern digital economy,” Trad said. “Growing our national energy generation capacity is critical to keep downward pressure on prices, as we cannot rely upon coal-power electricity from generators fast approaching their end-of-life, to supply our needs for the future.”

Trad added that aligning data centre development with clean energy projects supports Australia’s net zero goals whilst delivering economic benefits to communities, industries, and local councils.