NO SPACE AFTER 2030

The halt in new data center construction imposed on Amsterdam and adjoining Haarlemmermeer municipality is now about to end with the approval of a new policy.

The new data center policy has been announced for the Haarlemmermeer municipality and the “main points” have now been approved by its board – a highly significant step towards an end result. The policy specifies a number of business parks as areas where data centers can be constructed and expand from now on, excluding other business parks and lands in rural or residential areas.

“Given the economic importance and the growth ambition of the sector, this policy is urgently needed. Because the college considers spatial quality of great importance, we have included strict conditions for the establishment of data centers in our municipality. Only the most innovative, sustainable and green data centers are welcome”, said Marja Ruigrok, Alderman at Haarlemmermeer for Economic Affairs and Innovation.

The data center construction moratorium or temporary stop for Amsterdam and Haarlemmermeer municipality was declared in July 2019, when the government councils claim that the speed with which data centers are established in the region is putting an untenable strain on its property market and power networks.

While Amsterdam is yet to take similar steps in terms of its moratorium, Haarlemmermeer municipality new data center policy is expected to lure Amsterdam’s city council into considering lifting its ban over the next few weeks.

As announced, the Haarlemmermeer municipality is also committed to moderating the growth and concentration of data centers until 2030, after which it says there will no longer be space available in the municipality for data centers.

According to the Dutch Data Center Association (DDA), the endorsement of the new policy by Haarlemmermeer Board is to be followed by a six week consultation. The updated version of the policy will then be submitted to the Haarlemmermeer council with the hope of getting their approval after the summer.