The European Commission has postponed a planned sustainability label for data centers amid a dispute over nuclear energy. The label, part of the broader tech sovereignty package, will rate facilities on energy efficiency, water use, and waste heat recovery. It was set to apply from August 2027.
The rating scheme was expected to be unveiled Wednesday as part of the Commission’s tech sovereignty package. Its eventual application is now presumably going to be delayed just as the label itself has reportedly been. Two industry representatives confirmed the delay to POLITICO, citing significant pushback following the publication of a draft on March 27.
Nuclear power at the heart of the dispute
A central point of contention is nuclear energy’s role in the rating criteria. Ten EU member states, including France and Italy, have demanded the Commission recognize nuclear as a clean power source for data centers, arguing the draft text fails to respect technological neutrality. The Commission had reportedly told negotiators there was no political mandate to promote low-carbon sources beyond renewables. This position drew sharp pushback, POLITICO reports.
The nuclear debate is not new. As Techzine reported two years ago, the soaring energy demands of AI-driven data centers have placed nuclear firmly back on the agenda. Companies such as Oklo and Vertiv already announced a collaboration on nuclear energy solutions last year, tailored to large-scale data center requirements.
A broader pattern of EU regulatory friction
EU data center policy continues to struggle against practical realities. As noted in April, the first reporting round under the revised Energy Efficiency Directive found many operators lacked sufficient or accurate data to meet the new requirements. It delivered a fragmented result that complicates effective oversight.
The label was conceived as part of a broader EU framework already requiring larger facilities to disclose energy consumption, water usage, and sustainability metrics. Due to a mix of regulators failing to define clear requirements and operators only partially reporting these metrics voluntarily, a clear picture has failed to emerge so far on the data centres’ efficiency push. Despite all this, Europe’s data center market is currently booming. Then again, these expansions also serve to drive urgency to the effort to establish common benchmarks.
The Commission has not set a new publication date. The original draft remained open for feedback until April 23. How the nuclear question will be resolved before any revised version is released remains to be seen.