Data centres accounted for almost a quarter of all electricity usage in Ireland last year

THE METERED ELECTRICITY consumption by data centres rose by 10% last year, now accounting for almost a quarter of all usage, according to latest figures.

The percentage share of total metered electricity consumption used by data centres rose to 23% in 2025, up from 5% in 2015.

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The Central Statistics Office said metered electricity consumption by data centres rose to 6,973 Gigawatt hours (GWh) in 2024 to 7,663 GWh in 2025.

Consumption by all other users, including residential and other business customers, went up by 2% over the same period.

“Data centre consumption has grown every single year without exception, more than doubling between 2015 and 2019 from 1,240 GWh to 2,490 GWh, and tripling again between 2019 and 2025, reaching 7,663 GWh,” Dr Grzegorz Glaczynski, a statistician in the climate and energy division, said.