It’s no secret that data center development will use a lot of energy and water. Meta’s Hyperion data center is estimated to use the same amount of energy as 30,000 homes per day. In Malaysia, RimbaWatch published a report titled “Climate Impacts of Malaysia’s Data Center Expansion” which shows that the impact in Malaysia is no less negative.
In the report, 14 data centers that are currently or will be built will increase energy consumption by 2.2 GW. Of this amount, 1.7 GW will be generated using unfriendly energy sources. Every year, 13,000 GWh of energy from polluting sources will have to be generated, emitting 9.9 million tons of carbon dioxide each year, equivalent to the emissions of 2 million private vehicles or the entire country of Papua New Guinea.
This quarter alone, Johor approved the construction of 42 data centers, with Selangor not far behind. Therefore, the data used by RimbaWatch needs to be reworked to take into account the construction of these data centers in the near future.
In Malaysia, 72% of the energy supply is generated using petroleum, gas and coal, according to a statement issued by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof. A target of 40% sustainable energy sources by 2035 and 70 percent by 2050 has been set.
In addition to the sharp increase in carbon emissions, water shortages will also be a major issue that needs to be addressed immediately, such as using untreated water and collected from rainwater sources. The National Water Services Commission (SPAN) issued a statement last January saying that they hope that the government will mandate the use of alternative water sources for use by existing data centers, as well as for data centers that will be located in Malaysia.