Low-cost power seen supporting GCC data centre expansion

what happened

Gulf Cooperation Council countries are positioned for the next stage of data centre expansion, as inexpensive electricity and infrastructure strengths create favourable conditions for large facilities. Zawya, citing a S&P Global report, said the region is retaining its status as a major base for digital and AI infrastructure despite heightened geopolitical tensions. Continued spending across the wider enabling ecosystem and supportive government policies are helping sustain that position.

The faster and larger the build-out becomes, the more infrastructure data centres require. Reliable electricity and connectivity, effective cooling systems and resilient networks are therefore becoming essential to project delivery. S&P Global estimates that total data centre capacity in the GCC will increase to above 3 gigawatts over the next five years, roughly three times its current level.

UAE data centre power use is expected by S&P to more than double by 2030, reflecting the size of projects already announced. In Saudi Arabia, Public Investment Fund-owned HUMAIN is targeting 1.9 GW of AI capacity. If fully loaded, that could create about 17 TWh of additional annual electricity demand, equal to roughly 6 percent of the country’s current consumption. The report said gas-fired generation, nuclear power and rapidly expanding renewables, including gigawatt-scale solar, give the region a diversified supply base for AI infrastructure.

why it matters

The expansion makes power generation, grids, cooling and connectivity increasingly important to GCC infrastructure investment. It also links the region’s AI build-out with rising electricity demand and a broader mix of generation sources.

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