eco’s Managing Director Condemns Occupation of Data Centre Construction Site: “Data Centres Are Not the Enemy”

Following the occupation of a data centre construction site in Amsterdam and protests across Europe against the expansion of data centres, Alexander Rabe, Managing Director of eco - Association of the Internet Industry, stated:

"We strongly condemn the occupation of the data centre construction site in Amsterdam. Data centres are part of our critical infrastructure. Hospitals and other vital facilities depend on their reliable operation. Anyone who occupies data centres and thereby disrupts their operation or compromises their security could, in the worst case, put lives at risk. Peaceful protest is a fundamental right. However, anyone who climbs over barriers, enters construction sites without authorisation and occupies construction cranes crosses a clear line and also endangers people on site. This is not an acceptable form of political protest," says Rabe.

"Data centres are not the enemy. They are the foundation of our digitalisation and underpin prosperity, value creation and competitiveness. Without them, cloud services, digital public administration, industrial applications and artificial intelligence would not function. Criticism of individual technology companies may be justified. However, this must not lead to a blanket rejection of the infrastructure on which our entire society depends."

Rabe also rejects calls for a Europe-wide halt to data centre construction: "Germany and Europe have data centres that are among the most energy-efficient by international standards. Preventing their expansion here will not eliminate the demand for computing power. Instead, it risks shifting the development of new capacity to other regions of the world with lower efficiency standards and greater environmental impacts. This harms the climate while also weakening Europe's digital sovereignty."

Addressing criticism of water consumption, Rabe emphasises: "Here, too, we need a fact-based debate rather than sweeping accusations. Many data centres in Germany already use cooling methods that do not require continuous water consumption. In closed cooling circuits, the coolant is reused repeatedly. With dry cooling systems, there is no need for a continuous supply of fresh water for cooling during normal operation. Of course, we must use energy and water efficiently and ensure transparency about the impacts of new sites. But those who seek to prevent digital infrastructure altogether are not preventing digitalisation. Instead, they are preventing its responsible development in Europe."