Spain mandates 80% hourly renewable power

The Spanish government has announced a draft regulation requiring data centres with a power output exceeding 1 megawatt to source at least 80% of their hourly energy consumption from renewable sources. The proposal, unveiled during a council of ministers, aims to regulate energy sustainability, resilience, and digital sovereignty for these facilities.

According to the Spanish Ministry of Ecological Transition (MITECO), the country's Artificial Intelligence Strategy forecasts a need for nearly 2.5 gigawatts of computing power by 2030. This is projected to drive an electricity demand between 3.5GW and 4GW. Since 2021, Spain has already awarded over 12GW of grid access and connection rights for such data centre projects.

Renewable matching and storage debate

The proposed regulation would enforce a strict matching principle for new energy demand. For every new megawatt of power a data centre consumes, it must be matched by a new megawatt of renewable energy capacity installed within the 18 months prior to the facility becoming operational. This can be achieved through self-consumption projects or by signing power purchase agreements (PPAs).

José Donoso, general director of the Spanish Photovoltaic Union (UNEF), welcomed the focus on renewables but criticised the requirement for the entire supply to come from new capacity. He argued this makes little sense given high levels of technical and economic curtailment in the system. Donoso called for a more balanced approach that permits the inclusion of hybridised energy storage alongside new renewable generation.

International context and next steps

Spain's policy follows a similar move by Australia, where large-scale data centres will soon be legally required to put at least as much energy into the grid as they draw from it, with the new energy mandated to be renewable. The approach contrasts with that seen in the United States under the Trump administration, where a pledge signed by seven major tech companies in March 2026 committed them to matching energy demand but imposed no obligation for it to come from renewables.

The Spanish regulatory proposal, drafted by several ministries including MITECO, is currently open for public consultation until 4 September 2026. It also includes measures on resilience and digital sovereignty, such as requiring that data centre operations and associated data control be handled by entities subject to European Union law.