The first details of a 180,000 square metre data centre for Hertfordshire have been revealed as the government announced that new IT developments will be classed as ‘critical national infrastructure’ (CNI).
The new designation, to be announced by technology secretary Peter Kyle today (12 September), puts data centres on a par with the energy and defence sectors.
It comes as developer DC01UK confirmed that plans for a £3.75bn data centre were submitted to Hertsmere Borough Council this week. The 85-acre site, adjacent to the A1 and M25 motorways, will generate £1.1bn of gross value per year for the UK’s GDP, according to the firm.
The new site, also called DC01UK, could be operational in 2029 and support at least 500 jobs during the construction phase. It is expected to create at least 200 new jobs once it has been built. It is also forecast by DC01UK to create 13,700 new job opportunities throughout the UK indirectly, in different sectors.
The project will include upgrades to local cycling and bus routes, and a new Technology and Innovation Hub, which will host new apprenticeships and training opportunities. The buildings will be low-carbon and there will be onsite renewable power generation.
There is no indication from DC01UK of how long the development phase will be.
Data centres have boomed in recent years as demand for artificial intelligence has soared, with real estate advisor CBRE predicting UK demand would hit new heights in 2024.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said last month that building data centres across the UK was part of “mak[ing] every part of the country better off”.
Kyle will say data centres already play an “essential role in British society”.
“[They house] some of our most important data from vital NHS records to sensitive financial information,” he will add.
“This huge £3.75bn proposed investment is a vote of confidence in our plans to support the sector to thrive, ensuring everyone across society can feel the economic benefits of its growth.”
The new government classification adds data centres to 13 other sectors that have already been classified as CNI, including the energy, space, defence, health and transport sectors.
It means the government sees it as a sector that, if compromised, could have a “significant impact” on national security, national defence or the functioning of the UK. Any compromising of the industry could also have a “major detrimental impact” on the availability, integrity or delivery of essential services.
CNI sectors get a dedicated team of senior government officials, whose job it is to monitor and anticipate potential threats to the sector, provide prioritised access to security agencies including the National Cyber Security Centre, and help coordinate access to emergency services if any incidents occur.
A spokesperson for DC01UK said: “This project would put Hertfordshire at the forefront of one of the most technologically exciting projects in Europe and lead the world in setting the gold-standard for the next generation of high-tech infrastructure.
“We also take our green commitments very seriously, with our environmental credentials exceeding industry standards, and innovating to find new and sustainable solutions which will benefit both the data centre as well as local people and businesses.”
Knight Frank is advising on the project.
The bumper project is the second data centre to move forward in Hertfordshire this year, after Google started construction work on a £790m data centre in Waltham Cross in January.
Data centres have been a target for the new Labour government as it looks to boost the economy. Shortly after she took office, housing secretary Angela Rayner called in two planning applications for data centres on greenbelt land, which had been rejected by their local councils.
