The Pulse
EU Opens Consultation on Data-Center Performance Standards
The European Commission has opened a 12-week consultation on minimum performance standards for data centers across the European Union. Feedback will inform a legislative proposal planned for the second quarter of 2027.
AI.info Team ·
Brussels asks how data centers should perform
The European Commission opened a 12-week public consultation on minimum performance standards for data centers in the European Union on September 21, 2026, beginning work on rules that could set sector-wide requirements for energy and environmental performance.
Companies, public authorities, researchers and other interested parties can submit evidence and comments until December 14, 2026. The Commission says the responses will support preparatory work for a legislative proposal planned for the second quarter of 2027. The consultation does not establish binding standards yet.
The announcement forms part of a wider data-center energy-efficiency package that also includes work on a common European rating scheme and label.
Energy, water and grid pressure drive the review
The Commission links the consultation to the expansion of data-center capacity needed for cloud services, artificial intelligence and other digital systems. That growth increases demand for electricity and cooling while placing pressure on grids, carbon budgets and water resources.
Commission figures published on its data-center energy page put global data-center electricity use at about 415 terawatt-hours, or roughly 1.5% of worldwide annual consumption. The same page cites projections that consumption could rise to 945 terawatt-hours by 2030, driven largely by energy-intensive accelerated computing used for AI.
The EU has also set an objective of tripling its data-center capacity by 2035. The Commission says facilities that can adjust electricity use to grid conditions, use renewable or low-carbon power and recover waste heat could help reduce system costs and improve grid stability.
Existing reporting rules provide the evidence base
The proposed standards will build on requirements already introduced under the Energy Efficiency Directive. The 2023 recast created mandatory public reporting for data centers with a power demand above 500 kilowatts, giving the Commission an EU-wide body of information on energy use and environmental performance.
Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1364 established harmonized reporting elements and the first phase of a common Union rating scheme. The Commission’s preparatory work is intended to use those reporting and rating systems to make performance comparable across countries and to define requirements that can be applied consistently.
The Commission says any future requirements should be technically feasible, economically proportionate and administratively workable. The study supporting the work is designed to avoid duplicating existing EU or national measures.
A rating label comes before minimum thresholds
The Commission published the data-center energy-efficiency package on the same day as the consultation. Its rating scheme is intended to improve transparency around energy and water use and make it easier to compare facilities operating in the same region.
The scheme is also expected to track factors such as renewable-energy use, carbon emissions, waste-heat reuse and the efficiency of connections to the electricity system. A separate Commission call for feedback on the draft rating rules ran from March 26 to April 23, 2026.
That sequence matters for operators. A common reporting and rating structure would give policymakers a shared measurement system before the Commission decides which performance levels, if any, should become mandatory.
Commission study runs through 2028
The Commission has commissioned a study from VM Europe, Viegand Maagøe, Borderstep and VHK to support the standards work. The study began at the end of January 2026 and is scheduled to run for approximately 24 months.
Its methodology combines analysis of the first two reporting cycles under the Energy Efficiency Directive with earlier studies, stakeholder interviews, surveys and thematic workshops. The Commission has invited interested parties to register for future meetings and contribute to the evidence-gathering process.
The immediate deadline is December 14, 2026. Any binding performance rules would require a later legislative proposal and the EU decision-making process that follows it.