Denmark Pauses New Data Center Grid Connections Amid Power Capacity Strain

Denmark’s transmission system operator Energinet announced a temporary halt on new grid connection applications for data centers, lasting three months or until a capacity review is completed. The pause follows a surge in requests that outstrips the electricity grid’s available capacity, prompting regulators to reassess allocation priorities.

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The pause coincides with a rapid increase in AI-driven workloads across the Nordics, which demand high-density power. Industry leaders describe the backlog as a “fantasy” queue, noting that the gap between requested connections and actual capacity is widening.

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Key participants include Pernille Hoffmann, managing director for the Nordics at Digital Realty; Henrik Hansen, CEO of the Data Center Industry Association (DDI); Sebastian Schwartz Bøtcher, country sales director at Schneider Electric; Tobias Johan Sørensen, senior analyst at Concito; Søren Dupont Kristensen, COO of Energinet; and Energy Minister Lars Aagaard. All spoke at the Data Centers Denmark conference in Copenhagen.

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Industry voices have called for stricter criteria to prioritize connections, emphasizing project maturity, concrete investment decisions, and societal value. Henrik Hansen warned that the sector must be realistic about available power, while Sebastian Schwartz Bøtcher said the debate resembles an energy policy hunger game between data centers and other businesses.

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Energinet’s COO Søren Dupont Kristensen described the pause as an opportunity to rethink regulation. Energy Minister Lars Aagaard said he will examine granting priority grid access to Danish customers, which could push data centers to the back of the queue. No final decision has been made, as a new coalition government is still being formed.

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• “If you cannot get your AI workloads located in Denmark, you'll just move them somewhere else, and that is what we will see.” — Pernille Hoffmann, Managing Director, Digital Realty

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• “We have to be realistic and look at what is actually available.” — Henrik Hansen, CEO, DDI

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• “I suspect that data centers and battery parks, among other things, are taking up much of the available capacity in the electricity grid,” — Lars Aagaard, Energy Minister

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Hoffmann warned the pause could be extended, while the Energy Ministry has not confirmed any timeline, leaving the moratorium’s end date uncertain.

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The incoming coalition government will need to decide whether to adopt tiered priority systems or other allocation rules, a decision that could shape Denmark’s role as a data-center hub and set a precedent for other European markets.

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