As Malaysia continues to advance its AI aspirations, Johor has rapidly grown into a data centre hub. However, such developments do not come without a price. According to a report by the South China Morning Post, state officials have asked investors to temporarily halt water-cooled expansion projects for at least 18 months, or until mid 2027.
This is due to concerns regarding drought and pressure on the state’s water supply. As it stands, there are 15 data centres operating in Johor, with more currently under construction. It goes without saying that these facilities, which run around the clock, generate enormous amounts of heat, thus needing a lot of water for cooling.
This, unsurprisingly, poses a problem for residents who require water for their basic needs. In addition to drought, the state is also grappling with issues like pollution. And of course, the data centre water demand is expected to increase over the years as well.
Recently, Energy Transition Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof revealed that the data centre water demand in Johor is expected to reach 384 million litres per day (MLD) by 2030. For comparison, data centres in the state were allocated 6.10 MLD last year. It is worth noting that this allocation is only 21% of what the data centres requested. That said, the government asserts that revenue from the centres is adequate to safeguard the water supply system.
(Source: South China Morning Post, The Edge Malaysia)
