As generative artificial intelligence (AI) and digital transformation sweep the globe, the environmental impact of data centers—the backend infrastructure supporting this massive computing power—has drawn intense scrutiny. According to the latest digital carbon footprint report released by Arcep, France’s electronic communications, postal, and media distribution regulatory authority, energy consumption by French data centers is rising sharply. Greenhouse gas emissions from these facilities plummeted up by 23% in 2024, highlighting an increasingly severe tug-of-war between technological sovereignty, economic competitiveness, and environmental sustainability.
The report surveyed approximately half (160) of the operational data centers across France. Data indicates that total electricity consumption at these facilities grew by 12% in 2024, while greenhouse gas emissions surged 23% in a single year, reaching 178,000 metric tons of $CO_2$ equivalent. Arcep officials noted that looking back at historical data, the annual growth rate of carbon emissions was a mere 4% in 2022, rose to 13% in 2023, and broke past the 20% mark in 2024. This demonstrates that the pace of electricity consumption and carbon emissions driven by infrastructure expansion is accelerating significantly.
However, in the face of fierce global competition in the AI wave, developing digital infrastructure has become a core strategic pillar for European nations to maintain their technological sovereignty. In early 2025, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a massive investment of €109 billion (approximately NT$3.98 trillion) to encourage the construction of next-generation data centers nationwide. In the same month, the European Union also announced a €200 billion initiative to promote the establishment of mega data centers, aiming to propel Europe to the forefront of the global AI landscape.
Driven by strong policy momentum and the intensive development of the generative AI industry, the scale of data centers is moving toward extremes. A report by RTE, France's electricity transmission system operator, pointed out that grid connection applications from data centers have not only doubled in recent years, but their scale often ranges from 100 to 200 MW (megawatts). Some hyper-scale projects are even projected to demand over 1 GW (gigawatt) of power—a consumption volume that rivals the power output of a traditional European Pressurized Reactor (EPR).
In response to this unstoppable digital expansion, Arcep stated bluntly in its report that the operation of generative AI services is by no means invisible; rather, it has a tangible and heavy impact on the physical environment. The regulatory body urged that while governments and the tech industry push full steam ahead with deploying AI computing power, they must systematically take the "Earth's carrying capacity" into account. Finding more efficient energy-saving cooling technologies and clean baseload power will be essential to striking a dynamic balance between digital transformation and net-zero carbon emissions.
Image/Source: https://netzero.cna.com.tw/news/202605220285/
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