We were in touch with Ariane Burgess, MSP and Convener of the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee of the Scottish Parliament, about our concerns over Data Centres. She previously put some questions to the Minister responsible for planning, and has followed up with more.
These questions look at a number of areas: whether Scottish Government is tracking the number and capacity of applications for data centres into local planning authorities, Whether they are assessing the impact on the grid, water, communities and climate targets, and whether they are taking a strategic approach with respect to grid allocations and potential sites which were identified by a report from Scottish Government agencies.
You can see the answers below.
Question: S6W-42878
- Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
- Date lodged: 9 January 2026
- Current status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 27 January 2026
To ask the Scottish Government how it is monitoring the (a) number and (b) energy capacity of data centres that are currently in the Scottish planning system.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not hold a centrally maintained dataset specifically identifying developments as data centres within the planning system.
Planning applications are submitted, assessed and determined by planning authorities, and information on the type, scale and energy demand of proposals is recorded through local authority planning registers and associated supporting documentation.
The Scottish Government engages with planning authorities, the energy sector and wider stakeholders to understand emerging development trends, including those associated with digital infrastructure and data centres.
Question: S6W-42877
- Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
- Date lodged: 9 January 2026
- Current status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 23 January 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential cumulative impact of data centres on Scotland’s (a) electricity grid, (b) water resources, (c) groundwater and (d) communities.
Answer
The Scottish Government is taking a whole system approach in its assessment of data centre infrastructure requirements and implications, including ensuring that the energy and water demands as well as community concerns are considered. The current key considerations are set out below:
(a) Electricity Grid; In October 2024, the Scottish, UK and Welsh Governments jointly commissioned a Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) for Great Britain which will assess the optimal locations, quantities and types of energy infrastructure required to meet future energy demand, including from data centres, with the clean, affordable and secure supply that we need. The National Energy System Operator (NESO) is responsible for the development of the SSEP and the Scottish Government continues to engage with NESO on its progress and development.
(b) and (c) water resources and groundwater; This is an operational matter for Scottish Water which is encouraging data centre developers to look at sustainable alternatives, for example, using closed loop systems, using treated effluent or locating data centres in areas where there is a plentiful supply of water.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) regulates activities that abstract more than 50m³/day of inland waters (surface or groundwater).
SEPA assess these activities against Environmental Standards using the latest data on waterbody capacity and existing pressures. This ensures cumulative impacts are considered and permits are not issued where standards would be breached or other users adversely affected.
(d) Communities; Where development proposals come forward, the planning system ensures the potential impacts of proposals on communities and nature – including cumulative impacts – are important considerations in the decision-making process. All applications are subject to site specific assessments.
Through continued engagement with NESO, SEPA and Scottish Water, we will ensure that data centre investment takes place in a resource considerate manner, mitigating negative impacts and maximising positive impacts where possible, such as reduction in curtailment costs, where opportunities align.
Question: S6W-42875
- Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
- Date lodged: 7 January 2026
- Current status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 21 January 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, regarding any implications for its energy strategy, what assessment it has made of the maximum data centre energy demand that can be accommodated in Scotland while aligning with its climate change targets.
Answer
There is an opportunity for Scotland to become a leader in green data centres given our capacity to generate energy from renewable sources.
Scotland’s renewable energy capacity continues to grow, with a strong pipeline of future projects that will play a key role in decarbonising the GB power system necessary for achieving net zero.
In October 2024, the Scottish, UK and Welsh Governments jointly commissioned a Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) for Great Britain which will assess the optimal locations, quantities and types of energy infrastructure required to meet future energy demand, including from data centres, with the clean, affordable and secure supply that we need.
Question: S6W-42876
- Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
- Date lodged: 7 January 2026
- Current status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 21 January 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, regarding any implications for its energy strategy, what action it is taking to ensure that the grid connections for planned data centres reserved by National Energy System Operator are matched with the most preferential sites in Scotland, as set out in the report, Short list for Data Centre Site Development, which was published in May 2025.
Answer
With the exception of the Scottish Government’s statutory consenting function, issues relating to the design and operation of the electricity networks, including the process to obtain a grid connection, are reserved matters.
The Scottish Government regularly engages with the National Energy System Operator to discuss policy aims but ultimately grid connection applications and where they are made are commercial matters.
In October 2024, the Scottish, UK and Welsh Governments jointly commissioned a Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) for Great Britain which will assess the optimal locations, quantities and types of energy infrastructure required to meet future energy demand, including from data centres, with the clean, affordable and secure supply that we need.
Question : S6W-43431
- Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
- Date lodged: 29 January 2026
- Current status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 10 February 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-41364 by Ivan McKee on 28 October 2025, what estimate it has made of the total future electricity demand resulting from expected AI and data centre developments in Scotland, in light of its joint commissioning of a Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) for Great Britain, and how this estimate is being communicated to any local authorities that will be responsible for consenting large-scale, energy-intensive infrastructure.
Answer
The Scottish Government has not made its own assessment of the total future electricity demand resulting from expected AI and data centre developments in Scotland.
The National Energy System Operator (NESO) recognised in its 2025 Future Energy Scenarios, that up to a fifth of Great Britain’s future data centre demand could be based in Scotland.
While the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) for Great Britain is still under development, NESO recognises that engaging with local stakeholders, including Scottish Local Authorities, is critical to the success of the plan. The Scottish Government is aware of NESO’s engagement with COSLA, and you may wish to contact NESO directly at box.SSEP@neso.energy for any further detail.
Following publication of the SSEP, it is anticipated that NESO’s Regional Energy Strategic Plan (RESP) for Scotland will provide further insight into the forecast future electricity demand from data centres.
Question S6W-43432
- Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
- Date lodged: 29 January 2026
- Current status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 10 February 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-41364 by Ivan McKee on 28 October 2025, whether it received the full regional dataset underpinning the National Energy System Operator’s modelling of data centre demand in its 2025 Future Energy Scenarios, including the location-specific scenarios that were not published in the public report, and whether it will make the Scotland-level figures available to the Parliament.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not hold the regional dataset that underpins the National Energy System Operator’s modelling of data centre demand in its 2025 Future Energy Scenarios (FES) publication.
NESO does not break down the FES data centre demand data further, to be able to show the location-specific scenarios of data centre demand.