A boom in data centres on the Isle of Dogs might stall social housing for a decade
As data centres needed to power AI expand in the Isle of Dogs and South Poplar, the electricity grid can’t keep up, putting social housing on hold.
An investigation by The London Spy has revealed that data centres on the Isle of Dogs are consuming 75% of the area’s electricity, delaying plans to build public housing for at least a decade.
Once a hub for shipping and trade, the Isle of Dogs and South Poplar have become popular spots for data centres, huge hubs which store and process data. Data centres are currently in high demand as technology such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) advances.
To cool the heated machinery in a data centre, running water is pumped up and into the server halls, which is why it’s helpful to be near the Thames. On the Isle of Dogs, the proximity of Canary Wharf also creates a high demand for fast internet and computing power.
As a result, more than 20 data centres now operate on the Isle of Dogs and nearby in South Poplar, eating up ¾ of the area’s available energy supply.
An April 2025 Tower Hamlets Council document discovered by the Spy warns ‘House building, at scale, is unable to proceed for potentially 10 years + due to lack of available electricity capacity.’
The Council’s housing department blamed a ‘sudden increase in connection applications from data centres.’ Additionally, the department cited a lack of sufficient infrastructure for connecting new homes to the grid.
The Council has asked the Greater London Authority (GLA) and London’s electricity distributor, UK Power Networks (UKPN), to step in and install a new primary substation on the Isle of Dogs by 2030. Without the substation, new housing developments could be cancelled or delayed.
The current lack of energy is already impacting greenlit projects, such as the 1,300-home Westferry Printworks development, which was approved last year.
Shortage of housing, rising costs of living, and a lack of resources compared to the rest of the borough have long been points of contention on the Isle of Dogs.
A previous investigation by the Slice has shown how, as high-rise housing has increased, other necessary infrastructure such as petrol stations, schools and fire ladders have been neglected on the Isle of Dogs.
A Tower Hamlets spokesperson told the Spy, ‘We are not aware of a lack of grid capacity on the Isle of Dogs, or that this might be delaying delivery of housebuilding.’
‘We support the delivery of much-needed housing on the Isle of Dogs for our residents.’
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