Plans for massive data centre in north Devon

A massive data centre and battery storage site is planned for a site in the north Devon countryside.

The scheme is attracting considerable opposition from residents concerned about noise, water supplies, power usage and the impact on the landscape.

Xlinks, the company behind a stalled bid to bring renewable energy to the UK from Morocco through cables under the sea, wants to build the data campus near Great Torrington.

The firm claims the artificial intelligence campus - made up of giant warehouses full of powerful computers used to run digital services - will create between 650 and 1,200 new jobs and be worth up to £3.6bn to the economy.

Xlinks said the data campus would take up just over a third of an 850-acre (3.4 sq km) site between Great Torrington, Weare Gifford and Huntshaw.

News of the plans emerged when the MP for the area, Conservative Sir Geoffrey Cox, announced a public meeting held on Thursday at the town hall in Great Torrington, which was attended by hundreds of people.

Local resident Helen Lewis said: "My concerns are around noise, light pollution, destruction of our beautiful countryside and wildlife."

She added she was worried about any increased risk of fire and the amount of water and electricity the site would use.

Many existing data centre plants require large quantities of water to prevent them from overheating.

Torrington resident Diana Percy, who also went to the meeting, said: "It's on land that's so rich in wildlife and it would destroy all of that.

"We understand AI exists but this is just the wrong place - it should go on a brownfield site."

The government said data centres were "critical to nearly all economic activity and public services" and they were designated as critical national infrastructure in 2024 - on an equal footing as water, energy and emergency services systems.

There are hundreds of data centres around the UK, with the vast majority of those being planned or under construction near major cities, according to construction researchers Barbour ABI.

Xlinks said the data centre would provide "the 'brains' behind the AI models that increasingly power everyday digital life".

It said the location had been chosen for its "mild year-round temperatures", along with good access to solar and wind power, spare capacity at Alverdiscott substation and on a site which could be screened from view.

The Xlinks Morocco-UK Power Project plans involved bringing power to a new electricity substation that would have been built next to the existing substation at Alverdiscott.

Xlinks said there would be two separate planning applications for the data centre and the battery storage site but neither had yet been submitted.

James Humfrey, CEO at Xlinks, said: "We know a project of this scale will raise questions and we'd expect nothing less from a community that cares about where they live."

A series of public information days is due to be held on 14 July in Weare Giffard, 15 July in Great Torrington, 16 July in Huntshaw and 17 July in Bideford.

Humfrey said: "They're an open invitation for people to see the proposals in detail, talk directly to the team and tell us what matters most to them.

"That feedback genuinely shapes how we take the Devon data campus forward and we'd encourage anyone with questions or concerns to come along."

Follow BBC Devon on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk.