00:00Inside this Port Melbourne data centre, Alex Coates can barely be heard over the DIN.
00:07Air conditioning that runs around the clock to keep the servers cool,
00:11and the data of thousands of Australians safe is overwhelmingly loud.
00:15And you can see here just the kind of stack that we're looking at.
00:19Alex Coates says demand for data services is booming, driven by two forces.
00:24The first is since COVID-19 we have seen this radical digitisation of citizen experiences.
00:30And then if you consider the second force which is of course artificial intelligence or AI.
00:36There are about 200 data centres in Australia using around 5% of electricity supply from the grid.
00:43And that number is expected to nearly double by 2030.
00:46Rapid growth in the number of data centres will come with an explosion in demand for electricity to power them.
00:52And so this notion of the data that sits behind these two driving forces,
00:56we haven't seen anything like the demand that we will see over this coming period in what that means.
01:04After 16 years of flatlining, electricity demand reached new highs last year.
01:09Experts say there are a few reasons for the uptick, including the electrification of things like transport,
01:14and our insatiable need for data could further accelerate demand for power.
01:19So our expectation is that the demand forecasts will be exceeded enormously and it's a real issue for the economy.
01:25Authorities insist they are keeping a close eye on data centre demand.
01:29But they note industry plans are often more bullish than reality allows,
01:33and say demand centres will be just one area where demand grows.
01:37But it is something that we are very focused on making sure that we are well positioned to support.
01:43Operators say Australia should look to the US, where demand has caught most observers by surprise.
01:48It's just so quick. The level of technological advancement is so quick
01:53that we are going to have to work really hard to get ahead of the wave.
01:57A virtual challenge for Australia's climate targets.
02:00A virtual challenge for Australia's climate targets.
02:07O.S.
02:07FVT has been also by a huge benchmark.
02:08A virtual challenge for Australia's climate targets.
02:10A virtual challenge for Australia has been implemented.
02:11A virtual challenge for Australia's climate targets.
02:13That will be their unique Soloiencia's international advance.
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