Tens of billions of euros in potential investment are being diverted to other countries due to Ireland’s ongoing uncertainty over its data centre policy, according to industry group Digital Infrastructure Ireland (DII).
Since late 2021, Ireland has effectively imposed a moratorium on new data centre connections to the national grid. The restriction remains in place as the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU) continues its review of policy on large energy users. DII says the delay is deterring global tech firms from expanding in Ireland and could have long-term consequences for the country’s competitiveness.
“You cannot get a connection off the grid now from either ESB Networks, EirGrid or Gas Networks Ireland,” said DII chairman Maurice Mortell. “We’re still waiting for the CRU policy decision on large energy users to come out — we’re four years now in a de facto moratorium on any new investments.”
As part of the National Development Plan, the Irish Government has committed €3.5 billion to upgrade and secure the country’s energy infrastructure, a move designed to address capacity constraints. While welcoming the investment, Mortell warned that it would take years before the improvements are felt.
“If you look at the level of investment that we’ve lost over the past 12 months — billions of dollars of AI investment has gone into the UK, the Nordics, central Europe, and the Mediterranean,” he said. “These are 10-year investments — we won’t see that again for a while.”
Mortell acknowledged that environmental concerns must form part of Ireland’s data centre strategy but said the absence of a clear and consistent policy was undermining investor confidence. “In order to look at a long-term strategy for Ireland, we need to have clarity around what is Ireland’s renewable energy timeframe, what capacity you’re going to bring onto the grid, and how our industry can continue to develop and grow,” he said.
A recent report by BlackRock found that data centre investment in Ireland has already peaked and is now expanding more rapidly in competing European markets. Once considered a leader in the sector, Ireland risks falling behind as companies look elsewhere for stability and scalability.
“Dublin wasn’t the only big metro,” Mortell noted. “Amsterdam, Paris, Frankfurt, and London all experienced similar growth to ours. It wasn’t inevitable that we would peak and then stop — the problem is that we didn’t invest in the grid and capacity at the right time.”
He added that Ireland’s current energy constraints had been anticipated for more than a decade. “All of the things coming through now were planned 10 years ago. It wasn’t news to EirGrid or ESB Networks that new capacity was going to be needed.”
