datacentre

Commentary is highlighting the enormous profits that large language model and generative AI investments would need to generate to satisfy investor expectations, given that today's datacentre technology has a usable lifespan of roughly five to six years. The argument points to the six major hyperscale cloud companies that have invested most heavily in generative AI, suggesting their required returns are unrealistically large and raising doubts about the financial sustainability of the current AI buildout.

Finnish authorities have ordered Google to stop work on two datacentre construction sites after the company failed to carry out required environmental impact assessments. The halt applies until the assessments are completed, putting one of Google's key European datacentre expansions on hold. The case highlights growing scrutiny of the environmental footprint of large tech infrastructure projects.

Google has been ordered to temporarily stop work on two datacentres in Finland after failing to complete the required environmental impact assessments for its construction sites. The order affects the company's expansion plans in the country, where it operates large facilities to power cloud and AI services. Environmental oversight is the stated concern, with authorities insisting assessments precede construction.

Finnish authorities have ordered Google to stop construction work on two planned datacentres in Muhos and Kajaani over environmental concerns. Regulators say the company failed to carry out the required environmental impact assessments before starting work on the sites. The projects form part of a €13 billion investment Google is making across multiple locations in Finland, and the halt raises questions about the timetable for the wider expansion.

Google has been ordered to temporarily stop construction at two datacentre sites in Finland after failing to carry out environmental impact assessments. The decision comes amid growing scrutiny of the environmental footprint of large-scale datacentres, which are being expanded rapidly to serve cloud services and artificial intelligence workloads. Observers see the order as a signal that environmental review requirements are being enforced against major tech companies in the Nordics.

An analysis reported by the Guardian suggests a proposed datacentre at Drax, in North Yorkshire, could produce nearly twice the annual CO2 emissions of all flights from Gatwick airport. The figures have drawn criticism from environmental campaigners, who say the project would undercut the UK's climate commitments at a time when datacentre demand is surging on the back of artificial intelligence growth.

A campaign group's analysis of Drax's planned datacentre in North Yorkshire says the facility would need to burn 4.9 million tonnes of wood a year, producing nearly twice the annual emissions of all flights at Gatwick airport. The claim adds to criticism of the energy company's biomass plans, with environmental campaigners questioning the climate credentials of powering data infrastructure by burning wood.

New figures show Microsoft's Australian datacentre operations, Singtel-owned Optus and Netflix are among large companies that paid no corporate tax despite billion-dollar revenues in Australia, according to reporting by The Guardian based on Australian Taxation Office data. The disclosures renew debate over how multinationals structure their Australian operations to minimise tax liabilities.