Norway Faces Push To Freeze New Data Centers Over Power Concerns

What lawmakers are doing

NRK and NTB report that the Red Party, a leftist ally of the ruling Labor Party, intends on Tuesday to table a proposal to freeze all new data center projects, citing strain on the electricity balance. Three additional supporters of the minority cabinet, along with one junior opposition party, have thrown their weight behind the effort, further turning up the heat on the government.

The cabinet is signaling caution instead of a blanket freeze, weighing tighter rules rather than immediate stops. In September, it said a white paper is in the works to strengthen requirements for new data centers, and NTB quoted Digitalization and Public Administration Minister Torgeir Micaelsen saying growth should be "more controlled" while indicating no support for "any short-term measures."

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What regulators are warning

Last week, the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate warned that the hydropower-rich system could tip into an electricity deficit "in a few years" without more capacity if "today's strong growth" in data centers continues. NVE estimates data centers now consume about 3 TWh annually, and demand could rise to roughly 25 TWh in 2035, given projects that already have been assigned grid capacity. Without new power plants, Norway would shift from an annual surplus of about 15 TWh to being a net importer.

Politics and the budget fight

The debate is moving into budget talks. The Socialist Left is considering folding resistance to data centers into negotiations over next year's budget, which Labor cannot pass without its partners, according to deputy leader Lars Haltbrekken in a phone interview. As he put it, "We are very worried about the immense power consumption of datacenters and the way it will push power prices up and increase the pressure to build out Norwegian nature."

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