Arabic version: هيئة تنظيمية في الإقليم الشمالي تطلب مزيداً من التفاصيل حول مشروع آريس

According to ABC News, the Northern Territory Environment Protection Authority has paused its assessment of Energy North’s proposed Project Ares data centre campus, saying it has a “low level of confidence” in the environmental planning submitted so far.

Energy North is seeking approvals for a 19,150-hectare hyperscale data centre campus on Murranji cattle station in the Barkly Region. The proposal could extract up to 4 billion litres of groundwater each year and would require substantial on-site power infrastructure. The NT EPA said the project could have “a significant impact on the environment”, identifying 10 potential effects involving air, water, people and land.

In a public response to the company’s environmental management plans, the authority said there was insufficient information on most environmental aspects and that it was not confident the proposed measures would work. Energy North must now provide further material through an environmental impact statement, while the NT EPA consults with the public and federal government. The project also needs assessment and approval from the national EPA.

The federal government is developing national data-centre standards for legislation in 2027. Environment Centre NT’s Bree Ahrens said development should not proceed until robust national laws are in place. Energy North vice-president Daniel Hunter said the company accepted the regulator’s reasoning, describing the lack of detailed impact-management measures as a gap the environmental impact statement was designed to address. He said the project would generate its own power and would not draw on the existing electricity grid.