Labor claims Victoria’s new datacentre rules are strongest in Australia but critics point to ‘huge loophole’
Datacentres in Victoria will be banned in residential areas, required to use renewable energy and contribute to the community but regulations won’t apply to existing centres or dozens currently planned.
On Tuesday the premier, Ben Carroll, and the artificial intelligence minister, Anthony Carbines, released the government’s sustainable datacentre action plan.
“These are the strongest, clearest rules for datacentres in the nation,” said Carroll, though he admitted the rules wouldn’t affect the more than 50 existing datacentres nor those currently seeking planning approval.
The new rules include a ban on datacentres near schools and childcare centres and in rural areas that cannot support them, along with a 150-metre buffer zone between new developments and homes.
Datacentres will be required to source their own renewable energy and will have to pay for connection costs and network upgrades.
They will also need to use recycled or non-drinking water for cooling or offset their usage.
The action plan revealed 19 datacentre applications in the pipeline were seeking a combined 19,714 megalitres of water per year – or 4% of Melbourne’s current supply. Currently, the 50 existing datacentres use less than 1% of drinking water in both Melbourne and Geelong.
The government said new datacentres will also have to give back to the community via a “local investment guarantee”, which could include jobs, Tafes and parks. They will also be required to employ Victorians during construction and train people for long-term jobs when up and running.
The plan also includes mandating “fair community consultation”, as well as existing noise limits, and fire and safety rules.
The federal government had previously flagged plans to require all new datacentres to be powered by renewable energy rather than coal and gas, but was forced to back down on the mandate after opposition from Queensland and the Northern Territory.
Carroll said he had consulted the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, in the lead-up to the state’s announcement while Carbines said their plan would be “likely adopted” by federal laws, expected in 2027.
It’s a shift for the state government after the former premier, Jacinta Allan, vowed to make Victoria the datacentre capital of the country last year.
Belinda Dennett, the chief executive of peak body Data Centres Australia, said the new rules were “disappointing” and could cause investment to “relocate” to other states.
“Datacentre investment has been incredibly important to the Victorian economy. Other states have seen the opportunity, and they are lining up for it,” she said.
Datacentre company CDC welcomed the new regulations, with its chief executive, Greg Boorer, saying it provided industry with “greater clarity”.
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But the Victorian Greens spokesperson, Sarah Mansfield, said the lack of retrospectivity created a “huge loophole”.
“If Labor genuinely believes these protections are necessary, they should apply to every datacentre in the pipeline,” she said. “Otherwise communities will rightly ask what the point of these new rules are other than to save Labor seats 10 minutes before an election.”
There has been growing community opposition in the lead-up to the November election, particularly in Labor-held seats.
They include Footscray, held by Labor’s Katie Hall on a 4.2% margin against the Greens, who ran a “stop AI datacentres” day of action in the electorate on Saturday.
NextDC has lodged an application with the state government for fast-tracked approval to expand its Footscray datacentre, known as M3, to cover 10 hectares, drawing 225MW of power and running 24/7. Some residential homes are within 15 metres of the datacentre’s boundary, which is zoned in an industrial area.
Hall is a long-term opponent of the datacentre’s expansion. But the new rules will not apply to the project.
The shadow attorney general, James Newbury, said Carroll’s plan was “irrelevant” because datacentres are “currently being built in the wrong spots”. He said the Coalition would release its own policy prior to the November election.
NextDC has also bought 169 hectares of land just outside Geelong, which had been earmarked for future residential development. The Labor MP for Lara, Ella George, expressed concern about the acquisition to the Age in July.
There are also Syncline Energy’s plans to develop a 350-hectare, 2.4GW datacentre in Plumpton, in Melbourne’s outer north-west, which is opposed by federal Labor MPs Alice Jordan-Baird and Sam Rae.
The proposed centre is larger than any currently operating in Australia and would consume more electricity than is generated by Victoria’s largest power station, Loy Yang A.
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗
New rules include a ban near schools and require datacentres to source their own renewable energy, but won’t apply to projects already in pipeline. Follow our Australia news live…
This lens runs the verified story through Cinnamon's AI — wired in the next step.
Datacentres in Victoria will be banned in residential areas, required to use renewable energy and contribute to the community but regulations won’t apply to existing centres or dozens currently planned.
On Tuesday the premier, Ben Carroll, and the artificial intelligence minister, Anthony Carbines, released the government’s sustainable datacentre action plan.
“These are the strongest, clearest rules for datacentres in the nation,” said Carroll, though he admitted the rules wouldn’t affect the more than 50 existing datacentres nor those currently seeking planning approval.
The new rules include a ban on datacentres near schools and childcare centres and in rural areas that cannot support them, along with a 150-metre buffer zone between new developments and homes.
Datacentres will be required to source their own renewable energy and will have to pay for connection costs and network upgrades.
They will also need to use recycled or non-drinking water for cooling or offset their usage.
The action plan revealed 19 datacentre applications in the pipeline were seeking a combined 19,714 megalitres of water per year – or 4% of Melbourne’s current supply. Currently, the 50 existing datacentres use less than 1% of drinking water in both Melbourne and Geelong.
The government said new datacentres will also have to give back to the community via a “local investment guarantee”, which could include jobs, Tafes and parks. They will also be required to employ Victorians during construction and train people for long-term jobs when up and running.
The plan also includes mandating “fair community consultation”, as well as existing noise limits, and fire and safety rules.
The federal government had previously flagged plans to require all new datacentres to be powered by renewable energy rather than coal and gas, but was forced to back down on the mandate after opposition from Queensland and the Northern Territory.
Carroll said he had consulted the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, in the lead-up to the state’s announcement while Carbines said their plan would be “likely adopted” by federal laws, expected in 2027.
It’s a shift for the state government after the former premier, Jacinta Allan, vowed to make Victoria the datacentre capital of the country last year.
Belinda Dennett, the chief executive of peak body Data Centres Australia, said the new rules were “disappointing” and could cause investment to “relocate” to other states.
“Datacentre investment has been incredibly important to the Victorian economy. Other states have seen the opportunity, and they are lining up for it,” she said.
Datacentre company CDC welcomed the new regulations, with its chief executive, Greg Boorer, saying it provided industry with “greater clarity”.
after newsletter promotion
But the Victorian Greens spokesperson, Sarah Mansfield, said the lack of retrospectivity created a “huge loophole”.
“If Labor genuinely believes these protections are necessary, they should apply to every datacentre in the pipeline,” she said. “Otherwise communities will rightly ask what the point of these new rules are other than to save Labor seats 10 minutes before an election.”
There has been growing community opposition in the lead-up to the November election, particularly in Labor-held seats.
They include Footscray, held by Labor’s Katie Hall on a 4.2% margin against the Greens, who ran a “stop AI datacentres” day of action in the electorate on Saturday.
NextDC has lodged an application with the state government for fast-tracked approval to expand its Footscray datacentre, known as M3, to cover 10 hectares, drawing 225MW of power and running 24/7. Some residential homes are within 15 metres of the datacentre’s boundary, which is zoned in an industrial area.
Hall is a long-term opponent of the datacentre’s expansion. But the new rules will not apply to the project.
The shadow attorney general, James Newbury, said Carroll’s plan was “irrelevant” because datacentres are “currently being built in the wrong spots”. He said the Coalition would release its own policy prior to the November election.
NextDC has also bought 169 hectares of land just outside Geelong, which had been earmarked for future residential development. The Labor MP for Lara, Ella George, expressed concern about the acquisition to the Age in July.
There are also Syncline Energy’s plans to develop a 350-hectare, 2.4GW datacentre in Plumpton, in Melbourne’s outer north-west, which is opposed by federal Labor MPs Alice Jordan-Baird and Sam Rae.
The proposed centre is larger than any currently operating in Australia and would consume more electricity than is generated by Victoria’s largest power station, Loy Yang A.
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗
Datacentres in Victoria will be banned in residential areas, required to use renewable energy and contribute to the community but regulations won’t apply to existing centres or dozens currently planned.
On Tuesday the premier, Ben Carroll, and the artificial intelligence minister, Anthony Carbines, released the government’s sustainable datacentre action plan.
“These are the strongest, clearest rules for datacentres in the nation,” said Carroll, though he admitted the rules wouldn’t affect the more than 50 existing datacentres nor those currently seeking planning approval.
The new rules include a ban on datacentres near schools and childcare centres and in rural areas that cannot support them, along with a 150-metre buffer zone between new developments and homes.
Datacentres will be required to source their own renewable energy and will have to pay for connection costs and network upgrades.
They will also need to use recycled or non-drinking water for cooling or offset their usage.
The action plan revealed 19 datacentre applications in the pipeline were seeking a combined 19,714 megalitres of water per year – or 4% of Melbourne’s current supply. Currently, the 50 existing datacentres use less than 1% of drinking water in both Melbourne and Geelong.
The government said new datacentres will also have to give back to the community via a “local investment guarantee”, which could include jobs, Tafes and parks. They will also be required to employ Victorians during construction and train people for long-term jobs when up and running.
The plan also includes mandating “fair community consultation”, as well as existing noise limits, and fire and safety rules.
The federal government had previously flagged plans to require all new datacentres to be powered by renewable energy rather than coal and gas, but was forced to back down on the mandate after opposition from Queensland and the Northern Territory.
Carroll said he had consulted the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, in the lead-up to the state’s announcement while Carbines said their plan would be “likely adopted” by federal laws, expected in 2027.
It’s a shift for the state government after the former premier, Jacinta Allan, vowed to make Victoria the datacentre capital of the country last year.
Belinda Dennett, the chief executive of peak body Data Centres Australia, said the new rules were “disappointing” and could cause investment to “relocate” to other states.
“Datacentre investment has been incredibly important to the Victorian economy. Other states have seen the opportunity, and they are lining up for it,” she said.
Datacentre company CDC welcomed the new regulations, with its chief executive, Greg Boorer, saying it provided industry with “greater clarity”.
after newsletter promotion
But the Victorian Greens spokesperson, Sarah Mansfield, said the lack of retrospectivity created a “huge loophole”.
“If Labor genuinely believes these protections are necessary, they should apply to every datacentre in the pipeline,” she said. “Otherwise communities will rightly ask what the point of these new rules are other than to save Labor seats 10 minutes before an election.”
There has been growing community opposition in the lead-up to the November election, particularly in Labor-held seats.
They include Footscray, held by Labor’s Katie Hall on a 4.2% margin against the Greens, who ran a “stop AI datacentres” day of action in the electorate on Saturday.
NextDC has lodged an application with the state government for fast-tracked approval to expand its Footscray datacentre, known as M3, to cover 10 hectares, drawing 225MW of power and running 24/7. Some residential homes are within 15 metres of the datacentre’s boundary, which is zoned in an industrial area.
Hall is a long-term opponent of the datacentre’s expansion. But the new rules will not apply to the project.
The shadow attorney general, James Newbury, said Carroll’s plan was “irrelevant” because datacentres are “currently being built in the wrong spots”. He said the Coalition would release its own policy prior to the November election.
NextDC has also bought 169 hectares of land just outside Geelong, which had been earmarked for future residential development. The Labor MP for Lara, Ella George, expressed concern about the acquisition to the Age in July.
There are also Syncline Energy’s plans to develop a 350-hectare, 2.4GW datacentre in Plumpton, in Melbourne’s outer north-west, which is opposed by federal Labor MPs Alice Jordan-Baird and Sam Rae.
The proposed centre is larger than any currently operating in Australia and would consume more electricity than is generated by Victoria’s largest power station, Loy Yang A.
Read the full story at The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · The Guardian ↗
This lens runs the verified story through Cinnamon's AI — wired in the next step.
- New rules include a ban near schools and require datacentres to source their own renewable energy, but won’t apply to projects already in pipeline.
- Follow our Australia news live…