Belgium’s grid operator Elia is considering setting electricity caps for data centres as rising demand from AI infrastructure threatens to overwhelm the country’s power system and block industrial users.
The proposal would classify data centres as a separate category, giving them a specific allocation limit within the national grid, Elia said. Flexible connections—where access may be restricted during periods of congestion—would still be allowed.
Elia’s warning follows a ninefold jump in power requests from data centres since 2022, with total capacity bookings for 2034 now more than double national forecasts. The operator said speculative projects risk hoarding capacity that may never be used.
Belgium’s Energy Minister Mathieu Bihet said the issue will be central to the 2028–2038 grid plan, stressing the need to balance industrial growth with energy security.
The country has become a hub for major tech investments. Google, for example, is planning to invest €5 billion ($5.8 billion) to expand its Belgian data centre campuses to support AI expansion.
