Ofgem Seeks £237,500-to-£712,500 per MW Deposits for UK Data Centres as Grid Requests Hit 125 GW
Updated
Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jul 29
Ofgem Seeks £237,500-to-£712,500 per MW Deposits for UK Data Centres as Grid Requests Hit 125 GW
2 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jul 29
Summary
Ofgem opened a consultation on making UK data-centre developers pay refundable deposits of £237,500 to £712,500 per megawatt to secure grid connections, leaving 1 GW projects facing upfront costs in the hundreds of millions.
125 GW of requested electricity capacity is now seeking grid access, up from 41 GW a year ago and far above Britain's roughly 46 GW peak demand in 2025, prompting the regulator to target speculative applications.
Key milestones would determine whether projects keep their place in the connection queue, which Ofgem says should protect consumers from developers reserving scarce capacity without firm plans to build.
The proposal lands as AI-driven data-centre expansion accelerates across Britain, where 564 centres are listed and Scotland alone has 24 projects in planning, while local opposition has grown over noise, power use and water demand.