Entrepreneurship

Bitkom: Despite Criticism of Energy Consumption, a Majority Is Open to Having Data Centers in Their Own Backyard

September 2, 2026. The public is significantly more open to new data centers than the debates over their energy consumption might suggest. For example, two-thirds of Germans (66 percent) would view a new data center in their own community positively. Forty percent would even be very positive about it. By contrast, about one-quarter (25 percent) would view a new facility somewhat or very negatively. At the same time, 88 percent believe that data centers consume too much energy. These findings come from a representative survey of 1,006 people aged 16 and older, commissioned by the digital industry association Bitkom.

Stock photo of a data center. Photo: Unsplash

Tags

Cloud, Digitalization, IT, Resilience

Contact info

Silicon Saxony

Marketing, Kommunikation und Öffentlichkeitsarbeit

Manfred-von-Ardenne-Ring 20 F

Telefon: +49 351 8925 886

redaktion@silicon-saxony.de

“Data centers are the backbone of the digital world and are becoming even more important thanks to AI—for business and government as well as for our everyday lives. The crucial question is not whether we need this infrastructure, but how we can expand it as efficiently as possible without harming people or the environment,” says Bitkom CEO Dr. Bernhard Rohleder. “The fact that the federal government intends to give local municipalities a larger share of the trade tax revenue generated by data centers in the future provides financial compensation if necessary and should therefore be implemented.”

The general public now considers data centers to be of great importance: 82 percent say that data centers are part of Germany’s basic infrastructure today, just like electricity, water, or roads. 73 percent believe that Germany needs more data centers. Location also plays a role: 72 percent consider it very or somewhat important that their data be processed in data centers located in Germany. However, this high level of support does not mean that new data centers are always met with approval everywhere. In some municipalities, there is resistance to specific projects. Accordingly, 92 percent would like to see a better explanation of why new data centers are needed. 83 percent have at least a rough idea of what a data center is and what happens there. Rohleder: “Operators and municipalities must explain early on what benefits a data center offers, what local impacts it will have, and how energy, water, land, and other resources will be managed.” Having its own data center capacity is also important with regard to digital sovereignty. Those who are permanently dependent on infrastructure outside Europe for cloud computing and AI also make themselves economically and technologically dependent. Rohleder: “Germany must become more attractive in the international competition for data centers. This includes competitive electricity costs, faster access to the power grid, and significantly faster planning and permitting processes.”

– – – – –