Why the EU's Data Center Boom Is a Black Box

Why It Matters

Opaque reporting prevents public and regulatory scrutiny of data centers’ environmental footprint just as the EU plans a major capacity expansion, heightening risks to energy planning, sustainability goals and public trust.

Summary

As the European Commission readies a tech sovereignty package including a cloud and AI development act that aims to triple EU data center capacity within five years, investigative reporting revealed a confidentiality clause—inserted after industry lobbying by firms like Microsoft and trade group Digital Europe—that shields site-level energy and water data from public access. The clause was incorporated nearly verbatim into the delegated act, prompting legal scholars and MEPs to call it unlawful and sparking parliamentary demands for revision. On the ground, compliance with reporting is inconsistent and some centers operate well below capacity, undermining the industry's argument for urgent expansion. Policymakers now face a clash between rapid infrastructure buildout and the need for transparent environmental oversight.

Original Description

As Brussels prepares to unveil a tech sovereignty package on June 3, the political tone around Europe’s digital infrastructure is shifting. A recent investigation (https://www.techpolicy.press/how-big-tech-lobbied-the-eu-to-hide-data-centers-environmental-toll/) by Investigate Europe, published with partners including Tech Policy Press, shows that a confidentiality clause inserted into an EU regulation after industry lobbying allows companies to keep site-level data center energy and water use out of public view, and many operators are not reporting at all. The finding highlights a disconnect between policy ambition and oversight.

What does expanding “technological sovereignty” with real accountability look like in practice? To explore this, Tech Policy Press senior editor Ramsha Jahangir spoke with Nico Schmidt, the journalist behind the Investigate Europe report, and Christiaan van Veen of Leitmotiv, a Dutch research and policy consultancy that has analyzed data center permit filings in the Netherlands.