New jobs and value creation stuck in the power queue

A proactive and realistic energy policy can drive greater value creation and create new jobs. The industry's power needs are not unrealistically high and can be met through faster development of power generation and grid infrastructure, says Reynir Johannesson, Managing Director of the Norwegian Datacenter Industry.

“There is strong interest in building data centers in Norway, and the good news is that the volume expected over the next 20 years is entirely manageable. We can further develop existing industry while also developing more data centers, which both secures existing jobs and creates new ones, along with increased value creation. The opportunities are queuing up. That should be seen as a positive for our society, rather than treated as a problem,” says Johannesson.

A new analysis (see attachment) from THEMA Consulting Group shows that Norwegian data centers used around 3 TWh in 2025 - barely a tenth of the consumption of the power-intensive industry. The analysis suggests that if conditions are put in place for growth in power consumption, power consumption from data centers will rise to 21 TWh by 2040. This is well within the growth in power production that can be realised if politicians want to develop Norway as an industrial nation. By comparison, the energy content of Norwegian oil and gas exports amounts to well over 1,000 TWh annually.

The data centre industry has high expectations of the Government, which on Friday presented a power package with measures to accelerate the development of power production and the electricity grid.

“We have to take the ambitions they are communicating seriously. We need to get started faster on both new power and grid development, which we hope the power package will help achieve. It's about unlocking the value that is standing still in the power queue. It is a paradox that Norway, which is overflowing with energy, is discussing new industrial development as a problem based on energy access,” says Johannesson, who also points to the industry's own proposals from earlier this year.

“We hope the parties in Parliament will soon reach agreements that allow us to make better use of the country's energy resources, so that we can better develop power-intensive industry while also securing sufficient access to affordable power for the rest of the business sector and for households,” Johannesson concludes.

The Norwegian Datacenter Industry recently presented six concrete measures the authorities can implement now to realise projects faster, put people to work and unlock value creation:

1.  Phased maturity standard and portfolio control

Clearer requirements throughout the project process, so that immature projects do not block capacity.

2.  Capacity deposit and advance assessment payment

Reserving scarce capacity should come at a cost. Provide krone-for-krone offset upon realisation.

3.  Gradual connection and ramp-up plans

Large projects draw capacity in stages, so that unused capacity can be used by others in the meantime.

4.  National capacity portal and specific connection dates

Better information for investors, municipalities and grid companies.

5.  Accelerated use of the existing grid

Temperature upgrades, sensors and dynamic power limits can provide 20–30 percent more capacity in the existing grid.

6.  Market-based flexibility and shared capacity in industrial clusters

Make flexibility a paid resource and let more parties share capacity.

Attachments

Long-term power consumption development for data centers in Norway

Fra kø til kapasitet NDI først publisert mai 2026

Contact:
Reynir Johannesson
Managing Director, Norwegian Datacenter Industry
Mobile: +47 465 48 595
Email: reynir@datasenterindustrien.no