EU Data Center Lobby Urges Gas Power to Meet AI Ambitions

Europe faces energy-climate tradeoff for AI growth

Europe's push to develop sovereign artificial intelligence capabilities has collided with its clean energy transition, according to the head of a major data center industry group who argues the continent must temporarily embrace fossil fuels or fall behind global competitors.

Lex Coors, president of the European Data Centre Association, told reporters that Europe's current energy infrastructure cannot reliably power the advanced data centers required for cutting-edge AI development. With grid upgrades incomplete and next-generation nuclear technology years away from deployment, Coors contends that new natural gas power plants represent the only viable near-term solution.

"The grid is not ready, [small modular nuclear reactors] won't be on time. So now what?" Coors said, framing the choice as one between technological sovereignty and immediate emissions reduction goals.

Why it matters

This argument from a major industry lobby crystallizes a tension facing policymakers worldwide: whether the strategic imperative of AI development justifies backtracking on climate commitments. The framing also positions China as the alternative—suggesting that European hesitation on energy infrastructure will cede AI leadership to a geopolitical rival. How European regulators respond will signal whether climate targets remain sacrosanct or can be subordinated to industrial policy objectives.

The infrastructure gap

The European Data Centre Association represents companies operating the physical facilities that house the servers, cooling systems, and power infrastructure required for AI computation. These facilities demand enormous amounts of electricity delivered with near-perfect reliability—requirements that Coors argues Europe's renewable-heavy grids cannot yet meet consistently.

The industry's preferred long-term solutions—expanded transmission networks, large-scale battery storage, and small modular nuclear reactors—remain in development or face regulatory hurdles that will delay deployment by years. That timeline mismatch creates what Coors frames as an urgent choice for European policymakers.

Climate versus competitiveness

The data center lobby's position places European officials in a difficult spot. The EU has positioned itself as a global climate leader with aggressive emissions reduction targets for this decade. Approving new gas-fired generation specifically to power AI development would represent a significant policy reversal and likely face fierce opposition from environmental groups and some member states.

Yet Coors's invocation of China taps into European anxieties about technological dependence and competitiveness. EU leaders have repeatedly emphasized "strategic autonomy" in critical technologies, including AI, as essential to the bloc's economic security.

The debate also highlights how AI's explosive growth has outpaced energy planning. Data centers already account for significant electricity consumption across Europe, and AI workloads are far more power-intensive than traditional computing tasks.

These details were first reported by E&E News, which covers energy and environment policy.