How Global Data Center Regs May Influence U.S. Policies

HWG LLP Energy Advisory

By: Sean A. Lev, John A. Hodges, and Jason E. Neal

See also Law360 (subscription required).

The growth of data centers, fueled by new artificial intelligence technologies, has led to increased government activity intended to address data centers’ burgeoning use of energy, water and land.  This activity is happening not only in the U.S., but also globally.¹

At the same time, because of the positive economic impact of data centers, some countries have offered incentives for new data center construction. These developments abroad could serve as models for regulatory action in the U.S., reflecting a desire for consistent and up-to-date rules.

It is therefore important to review the regulatory landscape, and potentially relevant recent developments, outside the U.S., to understand the options U.S. policymakers may be considering, and the effects of policies abroad on U.S. companies.  In turn, the recent U.S. election will be a factor that will likely bear on how international policies are applied in the U.S.

Implications for U.S. Industry

The data center market is increasingly global. It is therefore important for U.S. industry to remain abreast of international developments and the global market in which it competes, to understand their potential impacts in the U.S. It should also seek to participate in the development of beneficial policies here and abroad.

A rule abroad can influence policymakers in the U.S. In addition, U.S. industry can be adversely affected by a patchwork of regulatory requirements, including standards, among multiple jurisdictions—state, federal and foreign.

U.S. industry should seek harmonization of policies as warranted. This includes rules and incentives regarding efficiency of data centers, their equipment and their operations. It also includes seeking the development of modernized, reliable, and sustainable electricity and water supplies, and reasonable land use rules.

Europe

EU Rules. The European Union’s revised Energy Efficiency Directive went into effect on Oct. 10, 2023. Included in it is a new “obligation for the monitoring and reporting of the energy performance of data centres.”² The first reporting deadline was Sept. 15, 2024.³

Once a database is established, the European Commission will collect and publish data regarding the energy and water use of data centers “with a significant energy consumption.”⁴ The database will be publicly available and updated annually, reflecting data center energy use and energy efficiency at the EU and individual member state levels.

The data will also be broken down by data center size—ranging from “very small” at 100–500 kilowatts of installed power, to “very large” at over 10 megawatts.⁵ This plan is a part of the revised directive’s target of an 11.7% reduction in EU energy consumption by 2030.⁶

The EU’s Taxonomy Climate Delegated Act and Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive could both impose, and prescribe the content of, additional mandatory environmental data reporting requirements, and could encourage voluntary disclosure, depending on the size of the company.⁷

Furthermore, large companies may be subject to the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, which entered into force on July 25 and, among other things, requires businesses to consider environmental effects in their business decisions.⁸

The EU’s Joint Research Center has also developed a voluntary EU Code of Conduct for Data Centres, which compiles and encourages data centers to adopt a set of best practices, and issues awards to data centers that effectively use those methods to reduce energy consumption.⁹

Additionally, in 2020, the EU published a Green Public Procurement document on data centers, which outlines a voluntary set of criteria for environmental sustainability over the life cycle of a product that the EU or its member states can use as a framework to incorporate into their legislation.¹⁰

EU requirements apply to some of the equipment used within data centers as well. Since 2019, servers and data storage products sold in the EU have been subject to the Ecodesign Directive, which sets requirements for minimum energy efficiency and maximum energy consumption when idling.¹¹ The EU projects that switching to products complying with these rules could produce energy savings of up to 9 terawatt-hours per year.¹²

Country-Specific Laws. Germany’s Energy Efficiency Act was passed shortly before the EU’s revised Energy Efficiency Directive was finalized, and is targeted at conforming to the revised directive’s requirements.¹³ This law imposes standards for the energy efficiency of data center cooling systems, as determined by the ratio of the center’s energy use to the energy use of its information technology.

Additionally, it mandates the reuse of energy, including waste heat, on an increasing scale depending on when the data center opens—10% of energy for data centers that open on or after July 1, 2026, 15% for those that open on or after July 1, 2027, and 20% for those that open on or after July 1, 2028.

All data centers were also required to cover 50% of their energy needs with unsubsidized electricity from renewable energy as of Jan. 1, 2024. That goes up to 100% after Jan. 1, 2027.¹⁴

Other EU countries addressed data center concerns before the EU’s revised directive. Ireland released a statement in 2022 declaring that data center developments that did not align with certain principles would “not be in line with government policy.” The principles include:

• Economic impact;
• Grid capacity and efficiency;
• Renewables additionality;
• Co-location or proximity with a futureproof energy supply;
• Decarbonised data centers by design; and
• For small and medium enterprises, access and community benefits.¹⁵

In recent months, some data centers in Ireland have restricted user access to computing services during energy-intensive periods.¹⁶

France has not yet passed conforming legislation for the EU’s revised directive, but did receive public comment on how to address it in early 2024.¹⁷ Beginning in 2019, France has offered a reduced energy tax rate for data centers. Since 2021, however, that reduced rate has been subject to meeting environmental requirements.¹⁸

To obtain the reduced rate, data centers must follow good management practices, including eco-design, energy efficiency optimizing, energy consumption monitoring and use of high-performance cooling technologies.¹⁹

France’s Senate has also recently passed a bill to allow data centers to be designated as projects of major national interest, which would streamline their regulatory approval process, including for connection to the power grid.²⁰

The bill also provides for a reduced excise duty rate on electricity consumption for data centers that follow certain environmental conditions, and for the compensation of revenue losses through a tobacco tax.²¹ It is now being reviewed in committee in the National Assembly, France’s second legislative chamber.²²

Regulations also come from the local level. In December 2023, for example, Amsterdam imposed restrictions on where data centers can be built in the municipality.²³

Data center development is also functionally limited in the Dublin area, because EirGrid, its electricity provider, claims to not have the capacity to accept more applications until 2028—though alternatives like connecting to the gas network, or allowing companies to build their own infrastructure, are being explored and approved by the government.²⁴

United Kingdom

The U.K.’s Climate Change Agreement for Data Centres offers discounts on the climate change levy—a U.K. tax on business energy use, among other things—if certain efficiency targets are met.²⁵ This is a voluntary program, with a model agreement negotiated between the Information Technology Telecommunications and Electronics Association and the U.K. government that data centers can adopt if they want the tax reduction.²⁶

However, businesses may have to pay penalties, reducing the discount they receive, if they do not meet the targets, and can lose access to the agreement if they do not remedy their failure to achieve those targets.²⁷

There is also the U.K. Emissions Trading Scheme, which regulates use of large generators by data centers.²⁸ The scheme generally works on a cap-and-trade principle, where a cap is set on the total amount of certain greenhouse gases that can be emitted.²⁹

Canada

Though Natural Resources Canada does not regulate data centers or computer servers specifically, it does provide guidance for their energy-efficient design. Specifically, it recommends designing the physical space of data centers to be energy-efficient—for example, setting up a cool-aisle and hot-aisle configuration—consolidating server uses for efficiency, and moving some operations to shared servers.³⁰

Air conditioning equipment in Canada is subject to the nation’s Energy Efficiency Act and its associated regulations, administered by Natural Resources Canada, including large commercial package air-conditioning equipment.³¹ It could also be subject to additional provincial regulations.³²

Canada participates in the certification of energy-efficient equipment through the voluntary Energy Star program. That program covers, among other equipment, data storage devices, large network equipment, servers and uninterruptible power supplies that are used in data centers.³³

Asia

China. China has the most data centers in Asia, with a total of 449.³⁴ It is in the midst of its ambitious “East Data, West Computing” project that aims to improve the interconnection and efficiency of China’s computing systems, including by building 10 national data center clusters. China hopes to support these with over 80% green electricity sources by 2025.³⁵

China’s October 2023 Action Plan for the High-Quality Development of Computing Power Infrastructure largely seeks to grow technological capacity and ensure interconnection and efficiency across regions in China.³⁶

It sets being “green, low-carbon, secure and reliable” as one of its basic principles, and supports techniques like liquid cooling, cooling with natural resources including oceans and caves, use of renewable power sources, and improving computing efficiency.³⁷

On July 23, the government released a green development plan for data centers that emphasizes more specific targets. It sets goals of lowering the average power usage effectiveness, a metric for energy efficiency, to less than 1.5 by 2025, and increasing data centers’ renewable energy utilization rate by 10% annually.

To achieve these goals, the government plans to improve layout, tighten energy and water efficiency requirements, upgrade existing data centers, strengthen resource conservation and renewables, and promote energy-efficient technologies.³⁸

China also recently lifted previous restrictions on foreign investments in data centers and related industries, a change that became effective on Nov. 1.³⁹

Japan. In 2020, Japan set a goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. This spurred the formulation of its Green Growth Strategy.⁴⁰

For data centers, this strategy set a target of carbon neutrality by 2040, and “to achieve energy savings of at least 30% for all new data centers and decarbonization of a portion of the electricity used by data centers in Japan by 2030.”⁴¹

The strategy also encourages both the building of data centers and innovation in the efficiency of computing components and cooling systems.⁴² Additionally, Japan plans to revise its Strategic Energy Plan by March 2025 to further promote decarbonization, particularly in the face of a projected increase in energy demands—one source predicts a 35% to 50% rise in demand by 2050.⁴³

Singapore. Singapore put a moratorium on new data center development in 2019. But it began relaxing this restriction in 2022, by allowing parties to propose projects that emphasize efficiency, sustainability, economic growth and international connectivity.⁴⁴

Now, the country aims to expand the capabilities of its existing data centers by increasing the energy available to them through sustainable power production and greater power efficiency.⁴⁵

To do this, Singapore’s Green Mark sustainability certification will raise its standard for energy efficiency by the end of the year, and introduce standards for IT equipment-specific energy efficiency and liquid cooling by next year.⁴⁶

U.S. Election Implications

The recent U.S. election will likely have significant effects on U.S. energy policy—as have earlier elections. For example, on Jan. 20, 2017, the first Trump administration issued a regulatory freeze directing agencies generally not to send regulations to the Federal Register until reviewed and approved by the head of an agency appointed or designated by President Donald Trump.⁴⁷

The incoming Biden administration issued a similar freeze on Trump-era energy and other environmental rules.⁴⁸ These moves were followed by regulatory changes consistent with each administration’s policies. Expect similar action in the second Trump administration.

It remains to be seen what the effects of the election will be specifically on data centers. There is currently an ongoing federal proceeding on data centers that could be affected. On Sept. 4, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, in coordination with the U.S. Department of Energy, issued a request for comments on data centers, with comments due by Nov. 4—the day before the election.⁴⁹

The NTIA requested comments on “the challenges surrounding data center growth, resilience and security in the United States amidst a surge of computing power demand due to the development of critical and emerging technologies.”⁵⁰

The agency sought input on the potential risks, benefits and implications of the anticipated growth in the data center sector, and the appropriate policy and regulatory approaches to foster sustainable, resilient and secure data center growth. These issues will remain relevant, whatever direction the Trump administration takes.

It also bears emphasis that much of the regulatory action regarding data centers in the U.S. is happening at the state level.⁵¹ State policy approaches vary, from promoting data center growth to restricting it—sometimes within the same state.

Some regulation also occurs on a local level, particularly as it relates to the permitting and approval processes for development. That activity will undoubtedly continue.

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For more information on HWG LLP’s energy practice, please contact Sean A. Lev, John A. Hodges, or Jason E. Neal.  Sean Lev has served as Acting General Counsel and Deputy General Counsel for Environment and Nuclear Programs at DOE.

Abigail T. Phillips, a Legal Analyst at HWG LLP, contributed to the preparation of this advisory under the supervision of John Hodges.

This advisory is not intended to convey legal advice. It is circulated publicly as a convenience and does not reflect or create an attorney-client relationship.

¹     See Sean A. Lev, John A. Hodges, & Jason E. Neal, Data Centers: Artificial Intelligence Spurs Need for More Energy Efficiency, HWG LLP (Sept. 9, 2024), https://hwglaw.com/2024/09/09/data-centers-artificial-intelligence-spurs-need-for-more-energy-efficiency-2/; John A. Hodges, Energy Efficiency to Tame Data Center Energy Use, HWG LLP (July 31, 2023), https://hwglaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/HWG-Energy-Advisory-July-31-2023.pdf.  These advisories discuss regulation by the Department of Energy (DOE); the Energy Star program; the Energy Act of 2020; a Request for Comments on Bolstering Data Center Growth, Resilience, and Security, by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), in coordination with DOE; and state rules.

²      Energy Efficiency Directive, European Commission, https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/energy-efficiency/energy-efficiency-targets-directive-and-rules/energy-efficiency-directive_en#energy-performance-of-data-centres (last visited Nov. 7, 2024).

³     Id.

⁴     Id.

⁵     Commission Delegated Regulation 2024/1364, 2024 O.J. (L).

⁶      Energy Efficiency Targets, European Commission, https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/energy-efficiency/energy-efficiency-targets-directive-and-rules/energy-efficiency-targets_en (last visited Nov. 7, 2024).

⁷     A User Guide to Navigate the EU Taxonomy for Sustainable Activities, European Commission (June 2023), https://ec.europa.eu/sustainable-finance-taxonomy/assets/documents/Taxonomy%20User%20Guide.pdf.

⁸     Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence, European Commission https://commission.europa.eu/business-economy-euro/doing-business-eu/corporate-sustainability-due-diligence_en#what-are-the-obligations-for-companies (last visited Nov. 7, 2024).

⁹       Joint Research Centre, The EU Code of Conduct for Data Centres – Towards More Innovative, Sustainable and Secure Data Centre Facilities, European Commission (Sept. 5, 2023), https://joint-research-centre.ec.europa.eu/jrc-news-and-updates/eu-code-conduct-data-centres-towards-more-innovative-sustainable-and-secure-data-centre-facilities-2023-09-05_en

¹⁰    What is Green Public Procurement?, European Commission, https://green-business.ec.europa.eu/green-public-procurement_en (last visited Nov. 7, 2024); Green Public Procurement Criteria and Requirements, European Commission, https://green-business.ec.europa.eu/green-public-procurement‌‌/gpp‌‌‍‌-criteria-and-‍requirements_en#​voluntary-criteria (last visited Nov. 7, 2024).

¹¹     Servers and Data Storage Products, European Commission https://energy-efficient-products.ec.europa.eu/product-list/servers-and-data-storage-products_en (last visited Nov. 7, 2024); Commission Regulation 2019/424, 2019 O.J. (L 074) (as amended by Commission Regulation 2021/341 2021 O.J. (L 68)).

¹²      Servers and Data Storage Products, supra note 11.

¹³     Riham Alkousaa & Christian Kraemer, Germany Passes Law to Make Energy Savings Compulsory, Reuters (Sept. 21, 2023), https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/germany-passes-law-make-energy-savings-compulsory-2023-09-21/.

¹⁴      Energy Efficiency Act, Data Center Group, https://datacenter-group.com/en/company/sustainability/energy-efficiency-act/#c30619 (last visited Nov. 7, 2024); Gesetz zur Steigerung der Energieeffizienz in Deutschland1 (Energieeffizienzgesetz) [EnEfG] [Energy Efficiency Act], Nov. 13, 2023, BGBl I, no. 309, § 11.

¹⁵     New Statement on the Role of Data Centres in Ireland’s Enterprise Strategy Published, Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (July 27, 2022), https://enterprise.gov.ie/en/news-and-events/department-news/2022/july/new-statement-on-the-role-of-data-centres-in-irelands-enterprise-strategy-published.html.

¹⁶      Mathew Gooding, AWS Restricts Data Center Access in Ireland Amid Power Concerns – Report, Data Center Dynamics (Apr. 10, 2024), https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/aws-restricts-data-center-access-in-ireland-amid-power-concerns-report/.

¹⁷       Concertation des organismes publics sur les exigences de la Directive relative à l’efficacité énergétique, Consultations Publiques, https://www.consultations-publiques.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/concertation-des-organismes-publics-sur-les-a3005.html?lang=fr (last visited Nov. 7, 2024).

¹⁸       Helene Fouquet & William Horobin,  France Touts Tax Break for Data Centers to Lure Brexit Clients, Bloomberg, DataCenter Knowledge (Feb. 20, 2019), https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/energy-power-supply/france-touts-tax-break-for-data-centers-to-lure-brexit-clients; Fiscalité des énergies, Ministère de la Transition écologique, https://tinyurl.com/Fiscalitedesenergies (July 10, 2024).

¹⁹        Loi 2020-1721 du 29 décembre 2020 de finances pour 2021 (1) [Law 2020-1721 of December 29, 2020 on Finances for 2021], Journal Officiel de la République Français [J.O.] [Official Gazette of France] no. 0315, Dec. 30, 2020, p. 1; Data Centers: Conditional TICFE (Domestic Tax on Final Electricity Consumption) Reduction as of 1st January 2022, APL Expert En Data Centers (Feb. 17, 2021), https://www.apl-datacenter.com/en/data-centers-conditional-ticfe-domestic-tax-on-final-electricity-consumption-reduction-as-of-1st-january-2022/#:~:text=The%202021%20Finance%20Act%20changes,in%20the%20field%20of%20energy.

²⁰        Simplification de la vie économique, Le Sénat, https://www.senat.fr/dossier-legislatif/pjl23-550.html (Oct. 24, 2024).

²¹        Id; Code des impositions sur les biens et service [Code of Taxation on Goods and Services] art. L312-70; Choose France 7^th Edition, Élysée, 32 (May 13, 2024), https://www.elysee.fr/admin/upload/default/0001/16/63d434034d727df8380d6579c1cd517b3afcdca8.pdf.

²²       Projet de loi de simplification de la vie économique, Assemblée Nationale, https://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/dyn/17/dossiers/DLR5L16N49868 (Oct. 24, 2024).

²³       Peter Judge, Dutch Data Center Association Says New Amsterdam Rules Are “Symbol Politics”, Data Center Dynamics (Jan. 27, 2024), https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/dutch-data-center-association-says-new-amsterdam-rules-are-symbol-politics/; Matthew Gooding, The Ongoing Impact of Amsterdam’s Data Center Moratorium, Data Center Dynamics (Aug. 22, 2024), https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/analysis/the-ongoing-impact-of-amsterdams-data-center-moratorium/.

²⁴      Georgia Butler, EirGrid Warns Irish Government “Mass Exodus” of Data Centers Possible Without Connection Agreements, Data Center Dynamics (Aug. 7, 2024), https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/eirgrid-warns-irish-government-mass-exodus-of-data-centers-possible-without-connection-agreements/#:~:text=Ireland%20has%20had%20a%20de,to%20a%20lack%20of%20capacity.

²⁵       Environment Agency, Climate Change Umbrella Agreement for the Data Centre Sector, Gov.UK, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/climate-change-umbrella-agreement-for-the-data-centre-sector (May 23, 2022); Environment Agency, Climate Change Agreements, Gov.UK, https://www.gov.uk/guidance/climate-change-agreements–2 (March 2, 2022); Environmental Taxes, Reliefs and Schemes for Businesses, Gov.UK, https://www.gov.uk/green-taxes-and-reliefs/climate-change-levy (last visited Nov. 7, 2024).

²⁶      Environment Agency, Sector Contact List: Climate Change Agreements (CCA), Gov.UK, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/climate-change-agreement-cca-sector-contact-list (March 1, 2024).

²⁷      Environment Agency, Annex 2: Climate Change Schemes – The Environment Agency’s Approach to Applying Civil Penalties, Gov.UK, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/environment-agency-enforcement-and-sanctions-policy/annex-2-climate-change-schemes-the-environment-agencys-approach-to-applying-civil-penalties#section-f-climate-change-agreements-ccas (Dec. 11, 2023).

²⁸        John Booth, Regulation, Regulation, Regulation: Data Centre Policies in the EU and UK, Techerati (Aug. 11, 2023), https://tinyurl.com/RegulationDataCentrePolicies; The Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme Order 2020 (as amended, no. 1265, Schedule 1, Part 4a); Participating in the UK ETS, Gov.UK, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/participating-in-the-uk-ets/participating-in-the-uk-ets (Oct. 25, 2024) (“The UK ETS applies to regulated activities which result in greenhouse gas emissions, including combustion of fuels on a site where combustion units with a total rated thermal input exceeding 20MW are operated (except in installations where the primary purpose is the incineration of hazardous or municipal waste)”).

²⁹      Id.

³⁰     Data Centres, Natural Resources Canada, https://natural-resources.canada.ca/energy-efficiency/products/data-centres/13741 (June 6, 2022).

³¹      Guide to Canada’s Energy Efficiency Regulations, Natural Resources Canada, https://natural-resources.canada.ca/energy-efficiency/energy-efficiency-regulations/guide-canadas-energy-efficiency-regulations/6861 (Oct. 3, 2023).

³²     Energy Efficiency Regulations by Province, Natural Resources Canada, https://natural-resources.canada.ca/energy-efficiency/energy-efficiency-regulations/energy-efficiency-regulations-province/20986 (Sept. 6, 2023).

³³      Id.

³⁴       Cissy Zhou, Asia’s Data Center Landscape is Red Hot — and Increasingly Complex, Nikkei Asia (Jan. 4, 2024), https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/Asia-s-data-center-landscape-is-red-hot-and-increasingly-complex.

³⁵        Zhang Erchi & Chen Min, Five Things to Know About China’s Mega East-West Data Center Plan, Nikkei Asia (Apr. 21, 2022), https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Caixin/Five-things-to-know-about-China-s-mega-east-west-data-center-plan.

³⁶     Xinhua, China Unveils Action Plan for Computing Power Infrastructure Development, The State Council, The People’s Republic of China (Oct. 9, 2023), https://english.www.gov.cn/news/202310/09/content_​WS6523e392c6d0868f4e8e00f8.html; Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Action Plan for the High-Quality Development of Computing Power Infrastructure (Ben Murphy ed., Etcetera Language Group, Inc. trans., Georgetown University 2023), https://cset.georgetown.edu/wp-‍content/uploads/​t0573_compute_plan_EN.pdf.

³⁷     Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, supra note 36.

³⁸      数据中心绿色低碳发展专项行动计划 [Special Action Plan for Green and Low-Carbon Development of Data Centers, Xinhua, China Sets Green Targets for Data Centers], National Development and Reform Commission, The People’s Republic of China, https://www.ndrc.gov.cn/xwdt/tzgg/202407/P020240723625616053849.pdf (last visited Nov. 7, 2024); Xinhua, China Sets Green Targets for Data Centers, The State Council, The People’s Republic of China (July 24, 2024), https://english.www.gov.cn/news/202407/24/content_WS66a0b167c6d0868f4e8e96ba.html.

³⁹     Deborah Grey, China Paves the Path for Foreign Ownership of Data Centers, w.media (Sept. 10, 2024), https://w.media/china-paves-the-path-for-foreign-ownership-of-data-centers/; China to Lift Foreign Investment Access Restrictions in Manufacturing Sector, Xinhua (Sept. 8, 2024), https://english.news.cn/20240908/0a8ca53ac465457aae9a4dd63b77375f/c.html

⁴⁰     Green Growth Strategy Through Achieving Carbon Neutrality in 2050, Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (Oct. 17, 2022), https://www.meti.go.jp/english/policy/energy_environment/global_warming/ggs2050/index.html.

⁴¹       Carbon Neutrality, Internet Initiative Japan, https://www.iij.ad.jp/en/datacenter/tech/cn/ (last visited Nov. 7, 2024); Semiconductor/Information and Communication Industries, Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, https://www.meti.go.jp/english/policy/energy_environment/global_warming/ggs2050/pdf/06_semi_conductor.pdf (last visited Oct. 30, 2024); Green Growth Strategy Through Achieving Carbon Neutrality in 2050, Ministry of Economy Trade, And Industry at 97 (June 18, 2021), https://‌www.meti.go.jp‍/english/policy/energy_​environment/global_warming/ggs2050/pdf/ggs_full_en1013.pdf.

⁴²     Green Growth Strategy, supra note 40, at 95–97, 141.

⁴³      Hiroyuki Akiyama, Japan to Set 2040 Green Energy Strategy to Court Data Centers, Chip Fabs, Nikkei Asia (May 14, 2024), https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Environment/Climate-Change/Japan-to-set-2040-green-energy-strategy-to-court-data-centers-chip-fabs.

⁴⁴     Peter Judge, Singapore Authorities Invite Applications for New Data Centers, Data Center Dynamics (July 20, 2022), https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/singapore-authorities-invite-applications-for-new-data-centers/.

⁴⁵       Dan Swinhoe, Singapore to Unlock 300MW of Data Center Capacity Through Industry Energy Efficiency Initiatives, Data Center Dynamics (May 30, 2024), https://tinyurl.com/SingaporeUnlocksDCCapacity

⁴⁶     Id.

⁴⁷     Office of Management and Budget, Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies; Regulatory Freeze Pending Review January 20, 2017, Notice, 82 Fed. Reg. 8346 (Jan. 24, 2017).

⁴⁸     Executive Order 13990 of January 20, 2021, Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis, Presidential Document, 86 Fed. Reg. 7037 (Jan. 25, 2021).

⁴⁹     NTIA, Request for Comments on Bolstering Data Center Growth, Resilience, and Security, Notice and Request for Comment, 89 Fed. Reg. 71890 (Sept. 4, 2024).

⁵⁰     Id.

⁵¹      Lev, Hodges, & Neal, supra note 1.