Data Centres
Dail Éireann — 2026-09-22
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Roderic O'Gorman (GP), Dublin West

When the KPMG report on data centres was initially published it raised serious questions around whether a meaningful cost-benefit analysis was being undertaken in relation to the economic impact of data centres, particularly when it coincided so closely with the publication of academic analysis that showed households have seen their energy bills increase by hundreds of euro due to data centre demand driving up wholesale prices. Now it appears, through freedom of information requests, that the conclusions of the report were determined from the beginning and that the rougher edges were shaved off to present a more palatable picture.
The tender document that set out the specifications of the report asked KPMG to assess the challenges and potential disadvantages of further data centre development. The same terms of reference specifically provided the example of rising electricity prices as one such potential challenge, stating there is a potential for increase in electricity prices related to any grid infrastructure developments required to support further data centre development. Why, then, was this analysis absent from the final report? Were the consultants not asked to conduct a full net economic analysis, including the costs as well as the benefits of data centre expansion? Did the Department specifically instruct the consultants not to assess impacts on electricity prices for households and businesses?
Was any assessment carried out by the Department of the opportunity costs of dedicating grid capacity and public infrastructure to data centres rather than housing, transport or industrial development? Why were sustainability targets, which include measurements relating to energy use, water consumption and emissions, not included as core metrics within this report?

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Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-09-22/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-28T05:50:49+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-09-22