Sir, – While some defend data centres (“Data centres not to blame for electricity squeeze, expert claims”, Business, August 20th), their immense electricity consumption is a growing concern. In Ireland, these centres now use more power than all urban homes combined and are projected to consume 27 per cent of Ireland’s electricity by 2028. This unchecked growth is a serious threat to our carbon reduction efforts and could result in a seven-million-tonne overshoot in emissions by 2030.
With Ireland facing at least €8.2 billion in climate fines from the EU if we miss our 2030 targets, we must urgently reassess the role of data centres and prioritise investment in renewable energy to meet our climate commitments. – Yours, etc,
Dr CIARÁN O’CARROLL,
Dublin 3.