Malaysia data centres warned to find new water sources to ease pressure on public supply
Data shows that water infrastructure in three states can only provide 142 million litres a day to firms, far short of the total 808 MLD needed
Data centres store the vast amounts of information needed to power everything from e-commerce and cloud computing to AI and are a crucial piece of digital infrastructure.
But Malaysia’s data centre push has put a strain on resources with demand for water exceeding capacity, according to the National Water Services Commission.
The commission said it had approved less than 18 per cent of water applications for the 101 data centres operating across Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Johor in the peninsula’s south over risks of using treated water supply meant for the public.
“This is a result of insufficient supply of water to facilitate these data centres. Hence, alternative resources must be considered,” commission chairman Charles Santiago told a news conference on Monday.