Article · AI translation
IT Home reported on November 9 that, according to Reuters, the Norwegian government said on Monday local time that it would curb the rapid expansion of the country's power-hungry data centers. As the global artificial intelligence industry drives a boom in data center construction, Norway is the latest country to take steps to restrict the development of such projects.
According to IT Home, Norway currently generates more electricity than it consumes domestically and is a net electricity exporter. But recent forecasts suggest that power demand from new data centers could create an energy supply shortfall in the coming years and drive up electricity prices.
Rapid data center expansion is meeting resistance in several countries, as illustrated by related controversies during the recent U.S. midterm elections. Critics argue that the data center industry creates few jobs while driving up electricity prices.
Norwegian national grid operator Statnett announced on Monday that it would temporarily stop reserving grid connection capacity for new data centers until the government establishes a data center licensing system and clarifies the rules for managing such projects.
Norway's Minister of Digitalisation and Public Governance, Torgeir Micaelsen, said at a press conference: “This measure is intended to strengthen oversight of data center growth and ensure that the data centers we build are ones we truly need.”
Micaelsen said the new licensing system would give priority to data centers serving areas such as defense, policing and emergency preparedness, and healthcare. It would also prioritize projects needed for critical infrastructure such as mobile communications networks and financial systems.
He added that Norway wants to support domestic demand for artificial intelligence but will restrict access to land and electricity for global cloud computing companies and cryptocurrency firms.
Norway's Energy Minister, Terje Aasland, said that so far this year Statnett has received grid connection applications totaling 26,000 megawatts of additional electricity demand, exceeding Norway's current power generation capacity. Data center projects account for 75% of the total requested capacity.
The Norwegian government also said that new data centers should bear the associated costs they impose on the power grid. In addition, the government may require such projects to build their own gas-fired power plants to supply their electricity, and those facilities may also need carbon capture and storage systems.