SA’s data centres face growing scrutiny over their environmental footprint. (Image created via Gemini)
South Africa’s major data centre operators are pushing back against concerns their rapid expansion is placing unsustainable pressure on the country’s limited electricity and water resources, pointing to their renewable energy and tighter resource management initiatives.
This comes as the sector faces scrutiny from the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) over the impact of its rapid expansion.
The commission is investigating the human rights implications of the country’s growing data centre and digital infrastructure footprint. This includes concerns around electricity demand, water consumption, environmental impact, land use, public participation and the adequacy of existing regulatory frameworks.
The inquiry comes as data centres become increasingly important to SA’s digital economy, supporting cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), financial services, communications and other digital services.
Over the last few years, SA has become a magnet for data centre investment, with international and regional operators including Equinix, Vantage Data Centres, NTT Data, Africa Data Centres (ADC) and Open Access Data Centres expanding their local footprints as cloud and AI demand accelerates.
SA’s major data centre operators have defended their resource consumption, arguing their expansion is not coming at the expense of responsible electricity and water use, as the sector faces scrutiny from the SAHRC.
US-headquartered digital infrastructure company Equinix says it has science-based climate targets and achieved 100% clean and renewable energy coverage in SA.
“South Africa’s strategic position as Africa’s largest economy and a leading digital hub on the continent makes data centre investment a catalyst for economic development, innovation and competitiveness,” says Equinix South Africa MD Sandile Dube.
“At the same time, Equinix recognises that digital infrastructure must be developed responsibly. As demand for digital services continues to grow, responsible growth requires careful stewardship of energy, water and land resources, meaningful engagement with communities and human rights due diligence across operations and supply chains.”
Equinix South Africa MD Sandile Dube.
According to Dube, the firm’s local facilities benefit from the sector-wide closed-loop cooling performance that maintains an average water usage effectiveness of 0.1 L/kWh – roughly 95% below the global average.
“Globally, Equinix reported 96% renewable-energy coverage in 2025, marking its eighth consecutive year above 90%,” Dube states.
ADC, which operates three primary data centres in SA, tells ITWeb that it lowers its grid impact by procuring clean electricity through a 20-year power purchase agreement for a 12MW solar farm that wheels renewable energy to its Cape Town and Johannesburg facilities.
Ziaad Suleman, VP and CEO of Cassava Technologies South Africa and Botswana, notes its ADC subsidiary recognises the need for the sector’s growth to take place responsibly.
“Africa Data Centres recognises and appreciates the important role of the South African Human Rights Commission in examining the implications of South Africa’s growing digital infrastructure sector. Africa Data Centres has made sustainability and responsible resource use part of the design and operation of its facilities, including investments in renewable energy and water-efficient cooling technologies. We believe this growth must take place responsibly.”
Suleman notes the operator also supports evidence-based engagement on how South Africa can expand its digital infrastructure, while addressing environmental and community considerations.
Ziaad Suleman, VP and CEO of Cassava Technologies South Africa and Botswana. (Image supplied by Cassava Technologies)
The SAHRC says in terms of section 184 of the Constitution and sections 13 and 18 of the South African Human Rights Commission Act 40 of 2013, it is mandated to monitor, assess, investigate and report on the observance of human rights in SA, including emerging systemic issues which may affect constitutional rights and freedoms.
SA’s data centre sector is already a multibillion-dollar market, with research firm Arizton valuing it at $2.55 billion in 2025 and forecasting it to reach $5.28 billion by 2031, representing a 12.9% CAGR.
The market research firm says the growth, which is the fastest on the continent, is being driven by digital transformation, cloud adoption, AI, IOT, rising data traffic and expanding 5G connectivity, underlining the infrastructure’s growing economic importance.
The resource question is likely to become more significant as AI increasingly drives demand for high-density computing infrastructure.
According to a 2026 report, “The growth of data centres in South Africa”, published by the Digital Council Africa, data centres cause minimal environmental destruction because they account for just 0.9% of national electricity consumption and use ultra-efficient, closed-loop cooling systems that consume 95% less water than the global average.
However, environmental advocates and critics say that because SA’s grid relies primarily on Eskom’s coal-fired fleet, any additional demand from data centres carries a much higher carbon footprint than in regions with clean energy grids.
They have also raised concerns that the rapid expansion of these facilities − exacerbated by high-density AI workloads − also drives significant land-use conversion, e-waste generation and local air pollution from diesel backup generators.
A South African Development Bank study on digital infrastructure identifies water scarcity as a potential threat to continued data centre expansion, noting that data centres consume water both through cooling and, where sites are independently powered, through electricity generation.
Teraco CEO Jan Hnizdo tells ITWeb its 2026 Sustainability Report provides data intended to put some of the concerns around electricity and water use into context.
He says the company, which operates eight data centres in SA, distributed across five campuses, is investing in renewable energy, including its own utility-scale solar plant and long-term renewable-energy supply commitments, while deploying energy-efficient cooling systems and improving how its infrastructure manages energy and water.
The company says these measures have helped reduce its carbon emissions intensity, even as its IT footprint has doubled since 2023.
“Water use by our facilities in the process of cooling, especially in the context of water-scarce South Africa, is an important metric for us. How efficiently we use water matters – and the numbers back it up. Even as our IT footprint doubled since 2023, our data centre operations consumed just 0.03 litres per kWh in 2025 in the process of cooling, which is less than two tablespoons of water for every IT kilowatt-hour,” states Hnizdo.
Teraco reported an average annual power usage effectiveness of 1.43 for 2025, while its water usage effectiveness stood at 0.03 litres per kWh, he adds.
The company is targeting 50% of its energy from clean sources by 2027 and 100% renewable energy by 2035.
It has also started construction of a 120MW solar PV project, with completion expected in the first quarter of 2027.
According to Reuters, Equinix previously proposed a two-data-centre development in Cape Town. The facilities were initially projected to require up to 170MW of electricity, with opponents raising concerns about water consumption, power demand, emissions, noise and transparency.
The proposed facilities’ use of 170MW of power makes them among the largest proposed data centre developments in SA, according to activists.
The project was subsequently approved by the municipal planning tribunal, despite activist objections. The company has now put the brakes on the project, saying it is taking a wait-and-see approach as it focuses on its Johannesburg expansion plans.
Jan Hnizdo, Teraco CEO.
