Scotland tightens planning rules for large data centres

Scotland will require new data centres using more than 50MW of power — large, energy-hungry sites — to file environmental impact assessments, the government said 16 September 2026. The order tightens planning rules before a Holyrood, Scotland's parliament, vote on a Greens-backed moratorium, a temporary pause, on hyperscale, or giant, projects, which ministers did not endorse.