Queensland and NT reject Labor’s push to ensure that power-hungry AI datacentres use renewable energy

Queensland and the Northern Territory have rejected the federal Labor government’s push to require AI datacentres to run on renewable energy, adding friction to Canberra’s plan for nationally consistent rules on energy and water use. The policy aims to force datacentre operators to underwrite new power supply, offset grid demand, and avoid worsening consumer bills. The article highlights S&P Global’s warning that datacentre electricity use could rise five-fold by 2035 to about 10% of Australia’s total consumption, creating a mismatch between fast datacentre build times and slower renewable/transmission projects. That gap could push wholesale power prices higher, with broader implications for household bills, emissions, and grid reliability. For the Australia 200, the key market angle is the potential impact on utilities, energy infrastructure, and data-centre-linked capex expectations, while the policy uncertainty may weigh on sentiment around power-intensive growth sectors.