By Media Selangor Team
SHAH ALAM, Mar 4 — Peak electricity demand from data centres in Peninsular Malaysia is projected to increase more than five times by 2030, while water demand in three key states is expected to reach nearly 397 million litres per day.
Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said as of December 2025, the actual peak demand from data centres in the peninsula stood at 849MW.
“This is projected to increase to 4,811MW by 2030,” he said in a written Parliamentary reply, in response to Langkawi MP Mohd Suhaimi Abdullah on the electricity and water requirements for the operation of data centres in Malaysia.
To meet overall electricity demand, including from data centres, Fadillah said his ministry has planned new power plants with a total capacity of up to 9,600MW.
“These plants are expected to begin operations between 2028 and 2031. They will replace existing plants scheduled to be decommissioned by 2030 to ensure the stability and reliability of the national electricity supply system,” he said.
Fadillah, who is deputy prime minister, said the government has also established a Data Centre Task Force to coordinate development and ensure projects align with grid capacity and national energy planning.
On water supply, he said that based on approved planning permissions as of December 2025, projected annual water demand for data centres in Selangor, Johor and Negeri Sembilan from 2025 to 2030 would total 396.65 million litres per day.
“The availability of existing water resources and supply must be taken into account in planning data centre development to ensure that water supply for current usage and planned development is not affected.”
He added that the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) has issued water supply guidelines for data centre development on September 1, 2025, to ensure compliance from the planning stage through to operational supply.
