"Who Foots The Bill": Cape Town Data Centres Face Backlash Over Projected Electricity and Water Use

• A CAPEXIT councillor has challenged the DA over approvals granted to data centres projected to use up to 50% of Cape Town's electricity supply
• The City of Cape Town's Municipal Planning Tribunal approved two Equinix AI data centres requiring 174MW of power and 4.4 billion litres of water annually
• Civil society groups including the Legal Resources Centre have lodged formal appeals against the approval, citing water and energy concerns

A CAPEXIT party councillor delivered a sharp rebuke to the Democratic Alliance and the Cape Town City Council on 23 October 2026, challenging the approval of large-scale data centres he says could place enormous strain on the city's electricity and water resources.

Councillor Jack Miller, speaking during a formal council sitting, questioned how Cape Town could justify approving facilities with such significant resource demands given the city's recent struggles with both load shedding and near-critical water shortages. He reminded the chamber that residents had been repeatedly penalised for high electricity and water usage over the past two decades, yet the same administration had now greenlit projects that could consume between 20% and over 50% of the city's current electricity supply.

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"Is the city going to shut down the hyperscaler data centres or once again are Cape Town residents going to have to foot this bill?" Miller asked the assembly.

At the centre of the controversy is a decision by the City of Cape Town's Municipal Planning Tribunal to grant initial land-use approval to two artificial intelligence data centres proposed by United States firm Equinix. The facilities, planned for the King Air Industria site near Cape Town International Airport, would span more than 120,000 square metres. They are projected to require approximately 174 megawatts of electricity and up to 4.4 billion litres of water annually for cooling purposes. The tribunal voted 4–1 in favour of the approval.

The decision has not gone unchallenged. The Legal Resources Centre, the Housing Assembly, and civil society organisation Foxglove have all filed formal appeals against it, raising concerns about insufficient transparency on water usage, energy demand, diesel generator pollution, and the impact on surrounding communities. The city has reportedly also faced criticism for withholding load and corporate details on the broader pipeline of data centre projects, with five already approved and two more under assessment.

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Watch Councillor Miller's address to the Cape Town City Council:

The video drew swift reactions online.

@donnethompson3678 wrote:

"Definitely not enough water, little to no planning from the City of Cape Town... dont worry residents we just tax you more and implement restrictions 🎉🎉🎉 oh and we'll pay ourselves bonuses 🎉 ..."

@shariepotgieter9489 was blunter in her assessment:

"Vote capexit, vote self governance, the people put DA in power, now it is time for the people to remove them from power. They as corrupt as the ANC... follow the money."

The project still requires additional regulatory approvals, including Site Development Plans and formal building plan sign-offs, before construction can begin.

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Source: Briefly News