The Russian Ministry of Energy announced the feasibility of building an artificial intelligence data center in Siberia. The Ministry believes there is spare capacity for such facilities in the area. An additional 30 MW of small data centers can be built on the Volga and Ural rivers. Report TASS.
According to the ministry’s estimates, the total capacity of grid-connected data centers in Russia is about 5GW; the share of data centers in the country’s total energy consumption has doubled in the past three years, from 1.4% in 2022 to 2.2% in 2025, and should grow to 2.4% this year. In the next five years, data center consumption will grow to 15.3 GW. A previous report pointed out that 4GW of data centers and mining facilities will be connected to the grid in 2025, an increase of 33.3% compared with the same period last year. At the same time, according to NF Group, the capacity of commercial, government and enterprise data centers in the Russian Federation Equivalent to About 1.8 gigawatts.
The Department of Energy stated that in the “Master Plan for Site Selection of Data Centers” and the “Master Plan for Site Selection of Energy Facilities before 2042” (and the plans are synchronized), data centers need to be divided by load type. The paper proposes that reaction speed is not critical for artificial intelligence objects, so the ministry “believes it is correct to place them in Siberia, where energy is abundant.” New capacity could also be built in open-pit coal basins or released gas fields. Autumn 2025, on the possibilities of coal energy for data centers spoke President of Russia.
Photo credit: Joel and Jasmin Førestbird/unsplash.com
Representatives of the ministry said that data centers consume extremely large amounts of energy and placing them in different locations across Russia will ensure a more even load, allowing the maximum number of such facilities to be integrated into the grid. In addition, since 200-300 MW facilities require larger-scale infrastructure solutions, deploying small-capacity data centers of 30 MW will make it possible to quickly provide connectivity.
One of the key factors in selecting a location for future data centers is the availability of accessible energy infrastructure. When the Department of Digital Development develops a master plan for data center layout with the participation of the Department of Energy and other federal authorities, the plan considers the alignment of the goals facing the data center industry with the energy system development plan.
Investors are already looking for sites located near power plants. Especially related to large placements COD is NPP Rosatom is working on a solution. Additionally, according to the Institute for Growth Economics. PA Stolypin is an energy base in Eastern Siberia where multiple data centers with a capacity of up to 200 MW each can be built and subsequently integrated into a network. Previously, MWS had expressed proposals to build data centers in Siberia and the Far East. proposal Utilize the resources of Chinese partners for this purpose. Anyway, ask Data center relocation This is not the first time it has come to these areas.
source: