Malaysian state of Johor drowns any ideas for Tier 1 and Tier 2 data centers —water concerns have authorities only allowing energy-efficient builds

The Malaysian state of Johor is halting proposals for Tier 1 and Tier 2 data centers due to concerns over water consumption. Authorities are only allowing the construction of Tier 3 and Tier 4 data centers, which are more energy-efficient and have lower water consumption. The move comes as a response to the significant water intake of lower-tier data centers, estimated at 40 to 50 million liters a day, compared to the 200,000 liters/day of Tier 3 and Tier 4 centers. The government aims to align new data center projects with higher environmental impact standards to reduce water usage and meet international benchmarks. Various strategies, including underwater data centers and innovative redesigns by companies like Nvidia, are being explored to address the water consumption issue in data centers.