Ireland Proposes Gas Discounts for Data Centers to Protect Homes

The Commission for Regulation of Utilities has proposed a policy to offer discounted gas prices to new data centers in Ireland. In exchange for these discounts, data centers must agree to accept planned supply interruptions during periods of high national demand to ensure gas security for households during extreme cold events.

The regulator warns that 17 planned data centers could consume gas equivalent to 2.6 million homes. Under the proposal, affected centers would be required to power down, postpone energy-intensive activities, or switch to alternative fuels, such as diesel. The commission argues that these facilities possess the operational flexibility to manage such interruptions.

Sinn Féin MEP Lynn Boylan criticized the measure as a work-around that encourages expansion. She argued that the government should instead impose a moratorium on new connections to the gas grid. The proposal is currently under public consultation.