Energy

Microsoft plans private power plant on €900m data centre site

Concerns about constraints on Ireland’s energy grid prompt action by tech giant, with facility likely to add at least €100m to cost of Dublin project

Microsoft plans to construct a 170-megawatt (MW) on-site power plant alongside 21 diesel generators in a bid to offset the high-energy demand from the facilities. Picture: Naoise Culhane

Microsoft plans to build an unprecedentedly large-scale gas power plant as part of a new €900 million data centre development in Dublin due to its concerns about the severe constraints on Ireland’s energy grid, the Business Post can reveal.

The planned investment will bring the total number of data centres operated by the US tech giant in Ireland to 15.

Generally, data centre operators will have smaller diesel-powered generators on-site for emergency scenarios. But in ...