28 May 2026
As Europe bets on AI and data centres, Ireland shows the risk: higher electricity bills for households
Dublin/Berlin, 28 May 2026 – The rapid expansion of data centres has drained a staggering €715 million from the Irish economy between 2015 and 2023, according to a new report commissioned by Friends of the Earth Ireland and Beyond Fossil Fuels, showing the EU the risks of betting on AI development without proper safeguards.
The report, The Cost of Data Centres: Modelling the Household Electricity Costs of Ireland’s Data Centre Sector, authored by postdoctoral researcher Dr Seán Fearon, reveals that during the last energy crisis, the poorest households paid an extra €209 in total between 2021-2023. Furthermore, it warns that in the event of another global energy shock caused by events such as the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the war on Iran, additional costs could soar to as much as €1.6 billion over the next decade.
The research comes as the European Commission looks to triple data centre capacity in the next five to seven years, in a market so far largely dominated by US Big Tech companies. The EU will present a data centre energy efficiency package alongside the tech sovereignty package – this has been delayed several times, but is now expected on June 3rd. [1] In early 2026, the Trump administration made a ‘deal’ with US Big Tech to have those companies bear the increased energy costs faced by citizens living near data centres. [2] However, the deal has not delivered, as tech companies remain focused on profits, unwilling to take responsibility for their impacts on energy prices.
Europeans are concerned about who pays for data centres, and do not want to see data
centres prioritised in an energy shortage. Yet the Commission’s approach seems to move in the opposite direction and double down on putting data centres and US Big Tech’s interests before people. [3]
Jill McArdle, International Corporate Campaigner at Beyond Fossil Fuels, said: “The Irish case should be a warning for Europe: letting Big Tech expand data centres unchecked will have massive ripple effects on the economy and European households. Combined with fossil gas, this creates a toxic mix – driving up energy prices for people already struggling through another energy crisis.”
“European decision makers are pressing ahead with plans for rapid data centre expansion, with too few or weak safeguards to prevent deeper reliance on gas that drives up costs. Even Trump, under intense pressure from voters, has acknowledged that Big Tech should pay its own energy bills. Unless data centres are required to be powered by additional renewable energy, they could lock Europe into volatile and expensive fossil gas.”
Data centres currently consume more than 22% of electricity in Ireland. Per capita, Ireland now hosts data centres that consume a larger share of national electricity demand than any other reported country in the world. Yet Ireland is not the only country in Europe vulnerable to the risk of rising energy bills: while gas use for electricity varies across the EU, other countries, like Italy and the Netherlands, still depend heavily on it. [4]
According to Friends of the Earth Ireland, the findings raise serious questions about the Irish Government’s current approach to energy and industrial policy, particularly as Ireland continues to face high electricity prices, growing energy insecurity and legally binding climate targets.
Rosi Leonard, Data Centres Campaign Lead at Friends of the Earth Ireland said: “Households in Ireland have effectively been paying a hidden data centre tax on their electricity bills. This is money families could have spent on food, childcare, housing, retrofitting or local businesses. Instead, households are subsidising an energy-intensive industry dominated by some of the wealthiest tech corporations in the world.”
“Data centres are not only driving up wholesale electricity prices – they are also fuelling Ireland’s dependence on fossil gas and undermining access to clean energy for everyone else. The scale of the data centre sector’s grip on Ireland’s energy system is not inevitable. It is the result of political decisions. The Government must now introduce a moratorium on new data centres, place firm limits on the expansion of existing facilities, and prioritise the energy security and affordability needs of ordinary people over the interests of Big Tech.”
The report also highlights that different policy choices could significantly reduce costs for households. [5] Scenarios modelled by Dr Fearon show that limiting future data centre demand while rapidly accelerating renewable energy deployment could save Irish households an estimated €435 between 2025 and 2034, even if another global energy crisis were to occur.
Postdoctoral researcher Dr Seán Fearon, author of the report, said: “Our modeling shows that the high, growing, and inflexible nature of data centres’ electricity demand increases the number of hours in which gas sets the price in the Irish power system, driving up electricity costs. Historical evidence suggests this effect becomes even more pronounced during energy shocks, with the combination of high data centre demand and gas dependency significantly amplifying price spikes due to energy insecurity. Projections for the coming decade indicate that limiting data centre demand while accelerating renewable energy deployment could save the average Irish household an estimated hundreds of euros cumulatively between 2025 and 2034.”
Data centres must also be required to be flexible and to reduce their energy demand during peak times. This could save billions in energy costs for Europe, and ensure there is electricity available for other social goods, e.g. the electrification of transport, industry and heating that would end Europe’s dependence on fossil gas.
ENDS
NOTES
More information in our media briefing, May 2026.
Read also:
System Overload”, a report that explores booming data centre growth in Europe leading to a surge in power demand, Beyond Fossil Fuels, February 2025
Ireland’s capacity market renewal: preventing data centres and fossil gas from adding billions to energy bills, Beyond Fossil Fuels, March 2026
[1] EU’s tech sovereignty package delayed for third time, Euractiv, 19 May 2026
[2] US tech firms pledge at White House to bear costs of energy for datacenters, The Guardian, 5 March 2026
[3] European Commission’s Proposal for a Cloud and AI Development Act
[4] Latest energy shock reminds Europe of its risky gas reliance, Ember, March 2026
[5] Using EirGrid forecasts for electricity demand (including low, medium and high data centre growth), the author repeated the analysis with projected renewable generation. Since future price data is unavailable, hourly prices were based on historical patterns. He also tested different levels of renewable expansion and simulated a future price shock by applying 2022 wholesale price conditions to the scenarios. Finally, these assumptions were combined to assess how factors like high data centre growth, low renewable deployment, and price shocks could interact. For details on the report’s methodology, see our media briefing.
CONTACT
Jill McArdle, International Corporate Campaigner, Beyond Fossil Fuels, jill.mcardle@bff.earth, mobile +32 456 723 993
About author Dr Seán Fearon
Dr Seán Fearon is an ecological economist and postdoctoral researcher at the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (ICTA-UAB), where his research focuses on postgrowth modelling and policy for decent living and wellbeing within ecological limits.
About Beyond Fossil Fuels
Beyond Fossil Fuels is a civil society network committed to ensuring a just and rapid transition to a fossil-free, renewables-based future. Building upon the Europe Beyond Coal campaign, its goal is for Europe to be coal-free by 2030 and phase out fossil gas from the power sector by 2035. A clean and flexible energy system will deliver lasting benefits for people, the climate and the broader economy. Beyond Fossil Fuels is a non-profit organisation with an office in Berlin, with staff spread across Europe.
About Friends of the Earth Ireland
Friends of the Earth Ireland is a community at the heart of the growing movement in Ireland for a just world with zero pollution. The organisation is part of the world’s largest grassroots environmental network, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2021. Friends of the Earth Ireland a not-for-profit company sustained by donations, subscriptions and grants.
https://www.friendsoftheearth.ie/