Europe’s power grids face long waits to connect new data centers

In short: Data center builders across Europe are waiting longer to get electricity hookups, and grid operators are testing new ways to make room.

What's going on

Europe is seeing a surge in new data centers, which are large buildings full of computers that run online services and many AI tasks. Europe’s IT power capacity grew from 10,539 megawatts in 2023 to 14,784 megawatts in 2025, with about €176 billion in planned investment. This rise is linked to AI, and global data center electricity use could reach 950 terawatt-hours by 2030.

The problem is that many local power grids were not built for this kind of demand. Some of Europe’s grid equipment is old, with about 40% more than 40 years old. Grids also have to handle more complex flows of electricity now, because power can move both ways as more solar panels, wind farms, electric vehicles, and large users like data centers connect.

In some places the pressure is extreme. In Dublin, data centers already use close to 80% of the area’s electricity, and regulators in countries including Belgium and Ireland are considering limits on new connections.

What to watch

Grid operators are trying several approaches. One is using “digital twins” (a detailed virtual copy of the grid) to predict bottlenecks before they happen. Others include rules that temporarily slow certain electricity uses during busy periods, efforts to remove speculative connection requests from queues, and capturing data center waste heat to warm buildings through district heating systems (like sending leftover warmth from a kitchen into nearby rooms).

Source: Wired