None of the three submitters against granting resource consent for a data centre to be built in the shadow of the Clyde Dam opted to speak at a commissioner’s hearing on Friday.
Instead, the hearing, led by independent commissioner Bob Nixon, focused on the mechanics of the application and questions Mr Nixon had regarding it.
Contact Energy has made an application for a two-lot subdivision, and land use consent for the construction of a data centre and associated facilities, in the water surface and margin resource area at a site at 46 Fruitgrowers Rd, Earnscleugh.
The application was only required to be notified to selected neighbours and Aukaha and Te Ao Marama representative groups.
Of those notified, three submissions were received, all from neighbours opposing the plan.
Mr Nixon heard from Contact Energy representative Boyd Brinsdon, Marshall Day Acoustics consultant Beth Paxton, Landpro senior planner Matt Curran on behalf of Contact and Central Otago District Council planning officer Adam Vincent, who all said any adverse environmental effects from the development would be minor.
Mr Nixon then moved to exclude the public in order to make his decision, which is standard practice.
The proposed 10MW data centre features eight containerised data centres — each holding 368 servers.
While the application is by Contact, the data centre would be owned and operated by UK-based digital infrastructure start-up Lake Parime on about 0.65ha of land owned by the power company under a lease.
The application states data centre operators look for secure renewable energy sources to power computers designed to process large volumes of data in response to emerging markets such as machine learning, data modelling and cryptocurrency mining.
The proposed data centre would operate on "flexible demand", meaning processing could be managed to reduce demand during periods of low river flows and optimised during periods of low electricity demand or when the Clyde Dam would otherwise spill water.
The application also includes provision for a 3.5m-high noise mitigation wall along the eastern and southern boundaries of the site.
The proposed development of a substation by lines company Aurora within the application site is linked to the development.
- A previous story about the hearing said Mr Nixon’s consideration of the application, his deliberations and subsequent decision were to be considered with the public excluded. The only part of the hearing the public was excluded from was the time Mr Nixon took to deliberate and make a decision on the application after considering all the relevant information, including questions and answers from the applicants and council staff.
