Data Giants Hide Energy, Water Data

0:00On April 17th, data center giants like Microsoft and groups representing Amazon, Apple, Google, and Meta convinced the European Commission to hide key details on energy use and water consumption from the public. Since 2024, operators have reported this info straight to the EU but individual facility data stays secret, labeled as confidential. Business info only broad averages per country see the light of day. Earlier this year, lobbyists pushed hard during rulemaking, getting their exact wording slapped into the final law almost unchanged. This shield specifics on power efficiency, renewables, and water from freedom of info requests across Europe. Legal Pro's argue this set up breaks EU transparency laws and the R-whose convention on environmental data access. In Ireland, just 18 centers reported so far, and the country missed two national reporting deadlines with another looming on May 15th. Delays stem from slow-law updates at the Environment Department.

1:01Reporting rates sit low at 38% EU-wide with questions over data accuracy. Meanwhile, data centers boon with nearly 200 billion euros, eyed for investment over five years, and Ireland planning 41 more on top of 89 existing ones. As pressure mounts for greener ops amid AI growth, watch for aggregated stats to drop soon, and any court challenges to force more openness on these. Power hogs. Europe news today, powered by AI bringing you what matters across Europe.