# Scotland directs authorities to flag large data-center applications

_Tuesday, August 25, 2026 at 3:35 AM EDT · Infrastructure · Latest · Tier 2 — Notable_

![Scotland directs authorities to flag large data-center applications — Primary](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/94c2721f70fe3370bfe6f5d678b2fee7ccf4eff3/732_0_5031_4024/master/5031.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&precrop=40:21,offset-x50,offset-y0&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=8680441f2c74b4bb77d3c950a0c3fe64)

Scotland's public-finance minister has issued directions requiring planning authorities to notify the government when they receive applications for data centers larger than 50MW, according to the Guardian. The directions also require certain projects, including the proposed Auchtertool development in Fife, to submit environmental impact assessments after developers had argued they were exempt. The Auchtertool proposal is described as a 600MW data center and has drawn 1,600 objections.

## Sources

- [The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/aug/25/never-seen-this-level-of-objection-scotland-pushes-back-against-datacentre-boom)

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Canonical: https://techandbusiness.org/newswire/snkmsZOia-VGge2N4WdCTd
Retrieved: 2026-08-25T11:30:18.248Z
Publisher: Tech & Business (techandbusiness.org)