Google reportedly reformulating Uruguay datacenter plans

Google will reformulate the Teros datacenter project that the company was going to install in Canelones, Uruguay due to concerns about the use of water, according to reports.

“The Uruguay datacenter project is still in an exploratory phase and Google's technical team is actively working with the support of national and local authorities,” Google said in a statement.

Environment minister Robert Bauvier told a local radio station that the company withdrew the project that was being analyzed by the ministry.

“The original project was withdrawn. Right now we don't have a project. They withdrew it to put together a new, much smaller project," the minister said, according to local newspaper El País.

According to Google, the project only applied to obtain its environmental location permit (VAL) and has yet to go through the prior environmental authorization (AAP) and environmental operation authorization (AAO) stages. "These instances involve a deep analysis of the characteristics of the datacenter that must be submitted to authorities for approval and be subject to a public consultation phase," the company said.

"As the planning and design process of the potential project progresses, it is expected that preliminary metrics (such as projected water consumption) will undergo adjustments," it added.

Announced in 2020, initial plans for the Teros datacenter included the construction of an electrical substation, an administration building and possibly a water treatment plant. Other necessary works are connections to the Montevideo metropolitan potable water network and the Ciudad de la Costa wastewater treatment plant.

Uruguay is facing a severe drought that unleashed a water crisis in the metropolitan area.

“At Google, sustainability is at the heart of everything we do, and the way we design and manage our datacenters is no exception. Our commitment to the responsible use of water and the protection of the environment for a more sustainable future are fundamental in all the countries in which we are present,” the company said.