Recent investigations have revealed that Microsoft and other American technology firms successfully influenced the European Union to obscure the environmental impact of their data centers. This was accomplished through lobbying efforts that resulted in the incorporation of language aimed at concealing a database of environmental metrics from public access, which was almost identical to the industry’s requests, into EU regulations.
This provision for confidentiality, which the European Commission added to its proposal nearly verbatim following industry pressure in 2024, obstructs the monitoring of pollution emitted by specific data centers. Consequently, researchers are left with only national summaries regarding the energy usage of these facilities.
The burgeoning demand for energy from AI chatbots has accelerated the construction of data centers filled with chips, many of which rely on fossil gas for power. Legal experts caution that this broad confidentiality clause could violate EU transparency regulations and the Aarhus Convention, which advocates for public access to environmental information.
Professor Jerzy Jendrośka, a noted environmental law educator at the University of Opole in Poland, stated, “In my two decades of experience, I cannot recall a situation quite like this. It appears to be inconsistent with the principles of the convention.”
Documents acquired by Investigate Europe, an independent journalism consortium collaborating with the Guardian and other media outlets, indicate that these regulations have already been employed to shield data centers from scrutiny.
In a communication referencing the confidentiality clause last year, a senior official from the Commission reminded national authorities of their duty to maintain the confidentiality of all information and key performance indicators related to individual data centers. “It is crucial to emphasize this point, as the commission has already received multiple requests from the media and the public for access to documents concerning the data,” the official noted, adding that all requests to date have been denied.
While the United States and China have spearheaded the global AI surge, Europe is also witnessing rapid data center development. The EU has set ambitious goals to triple its data center capacity over the next five to seven years, aiming to establish itself as a leader in artificial intelligence.
To enhance transparency, the Commission modified its energy efficiency directive in 2023, mandating that data center operators disclose key performance data. Further guidance suggested the publication of “aggregated” environmental metrics.
However, during public consultations in January 2024, technology companies lobbied to classify all individual data center information as confidential, citing business interests. This means that even freedom of information requests cannot access this data.
The final article’s wording, differing only slightly from the industry’s requests, stipulates that “the commission and relevant member states shall keep confidential all information and key performance indicators for individual data centers communicated to the database. Such information shall be regarded as confidential information impacting the commercial interests of operators and owners of data centers.”
Industry groups that advocated for this change included Microsoft, DigitalEurope—an organization representing members such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and Meta—and Video Games Europe, which counts Microsoft and Netflix among its members.
Ben Youriev, a researcher at InfluenceMap, a non-profit organization that monitors corporate lobbying, described this situation as indicative of how the tech industry is grappling with its increasing energy consumption.
Youriev remarked, “Where the industry once vocally advocated for clean energy and emissions reductions, many companies have now become reticent. They seem to prioritize a swift expansion of data center infrastructure globally over backing clean energy initiatives and prompt emissions reductions.”
DigitalEurope did not respond to requests for comment, while the Commission and Video Games Europe also declined to comment.
Microsoft expressed support for enhanced transparency regarding data centers, asserting that sustainability disclosures can foster better results and build public trust. A spokesperson stated, “We are taking additional measures to improve openness while safeguarding confidential business information.”
The EU executive views this regulation as an initial step toward establishing a standardized EU rating system for data centers. In a subsequent phase, with public consultation on the legislation concluding this month, the EU intends to publish sustainability scores from the database to facilitate comparisons of different data centers within the same region and encourage innovative designs or increased efficiency in data centers. However, under the current proposals, much of the information reported by operators would remain confidential.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the Commission’s internal stance is that publicizing each data center’s information might deter operators from reporting their sustainability metrics. Nevertheless, EU data reveals that only 36% of eligible data centers have complied with existing reporting requirements.
Researcher Alex de Vries-Gao from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam noted that the industry has a vested interest in keeping environmental data concealed. “Public information is severely limited. Typically, one must go to great lengths to obtain any figures,” he said.
The EU is obligated under the Aarhus Convention to ensure that environmental information is made systematically available to the public.
Luc Lavrysen, former president of the Belgian constitutional court and an emeritus professor of environmental law at Ghent University, stated that the confidentiality provision “clearly violates” EU transparency regulations and the Aarhus Convention.
Kristina Irion, an associate professor of information law at the University of Amsterdam, reached a similar conclusion, emphasizing that the “sweeping presumption of confidentiality” contradicts the principles of transparency that the EU is expected to uphold.
