We don’t have enough power: UK data centers test Net Zero pledges as AI energy demand grows

During Donald Trump’s state visit this week, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer welcomed a string of American technology bosses to Britain and signaled a technology prosperity deal intended to help the country build AI capabilities. But energy infrastructure questions are rising to the fore as experts warn that meeting the demand for new data centers could stretch the UK’s power supply and complicate Labour’s Net Zero timetable. The issue intersects with the government’s broader energy transition, raising questions about whether the nation has enough electricity—and water—to support a data-center boom while also pursuing decarbonization goals.

Jensen Huang, chief executive of Nvidia, signaled that the energy needs for new AI infrastructure in the UK will likely require fossil-fuel generation, including gas-fired power stations. One high-profile data-center project described as part of a broader “Stargate” initiative is cited as needing as much as 4.5 gigawatts of power—roughly the amount used by three million homes. By contrast, the total amount of power currently used by IT in the UK is about 1.6 GW, underscoring the scale of potential demand. These figures are drawing stern warnings from researchers and industry observers who say the math has to be right before facilities are approved. “These are really very power-hungry facilities,” said Professor Gina Neff, AI professor at Queen Mary University London, on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. “What’s a GW of power? That’s enough power for 750,000 homes.”

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Professor Neff warned that cooling data centers could also strain water resources, noting that the UK’s water supply is already stretched in parts of the country. She pointed to the Stargate plan, a collaboration among OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank, and highlighted that the first announced data-center location is Texas, with a target of 4.5 GW of power. “The maths needs to be right before these facilities can get built,” she said, adding that Britain “doesn’t have enough power and we don’t have enough water.”

Labour’s policy platform includes a commitment to reach Net Zero by 2050 and to decarbonize the electricity grid by 2030. The government has also pledged a permanent ban on fracking to extract natural gas, in line with Labour’s election manifesto. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has vowed not to approve new oil and gas licenses in the North Sea as the party steers the country toward green energy. That stance appears at odds with Huang’s public signals that gas-fired power could play a role in enabling the UK to become an “AI superpower.” He said there would be “a lot of motivation and incentives to want to bring more power to bear,” but that sustainable power—nuclear, wind, and solar—would be part of the mix, with gas turbines also contributing.

Treasury minister James Murray told BBC Radio 4 that Britain would not ramp up gas production to power AI data centers, insisting the plan is to move away from fossil fuels and toward renewable and independent energy sources. He acknowledged the energy grid’s current shortcomings but framed them as a transitional challenge as the country moves toward cleaner energy supplies. “That issue with there not being enough energy is why we are running at this transition to clean energy as quickly as we possibly can,” he said.

Reaction from the Conservative side has been pointed. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch argued that Starmer’s deal and promises of future tech investments distract from a larger problem: Britain needs cheap, abundant energy to support a tech and AI superpower status. She suggested Labour’s policies would push up energy bills, while Conservatives argued the government should exploit North Sea resources to lower bills for households and businesses.

Sir Nick Clegg, the former deputy prime minister who later joined Meta, offered a cautionary note about the scale of UK data-center ambitions. He described the current compute capacity in the UK—around 1.8 GW—with ambitions to reach about 6 GW by 2030 as comparable to a single data center built by Meta in Louisiana. Clegg said the hype around investment should be tempered with perspective, especially given competition from the United States and China in infrastructure. He added that the real opportunities lie in how AI is deployed in workplaces and in the development of new applications, rather than chasing headline capacity figures alone.

The energy and climate tension in this moment underscores a broader policy crossroads for the UK. Pushing forward with AI and data-center expansion could accelerate economic and scientific gains, but it also places pressure on the electricity grid, water resources, and the broader transition away from fossil fuels. Critics warn that without a robust strategy to upgrade energy infrastructure, the country could see rising bills, delayed housing and development projects, and increased strain on local utilities just as demand for digital services grows.

As discussions continue during the state visit and in subsequent weeks, policymakers will face a difficult balancing act: maintaining momentum on AI and tech investment while ensuring energy security, environmental commitments, and water availability keep pace with expanding digital infrastructure. The outcome will have implications not only for Britain’s climate goals but for the competitiveness of its tech sector as it seeks to attract global investment and talent in a rapidly changing energy landscape.