Activists disrupt construction of Microsoft datacenter in Amsterdam

Construction of a large datacenter for Microsoft in Amsterdam's Sloterdijk district was disrupted Friday morning by dozens of members from the anti-capitalist action collective Geef Tegengas. The protest targeted three data towers being erected by British developer Pure Data Centers Group, which are slated to be fully leased by the American tech giant Microsoft.

The project has faced opposition from both the municipality of Amsterdam and the province of North Holland, which have previously spoken out against new large datacenters. National politicians have also raised concerns. Around ten activists chained themselves to the rolling gate at the supplier entrance, while approximately thirty others entered the construction site, climbing a crane and a tower under construction, and chaining themselves to building machinery.

Activists presented several arguments for their unannounced protest. They contend that the facility, a so-called hyperscaler with a future capacity of 78 megawatts, will place an additional burden on the already overloaded Dutch power grid. This, they argue, will delay the construction of new homes in the Amsterdam region and cause longer waits for schools and businesses seeking power connections. Furthermore, the activists linked the significant energy demand of such data infrastructure to climate change, with some participants also involved in Extinction Rebellion actions.

The group also accused Microsoft, the intended tenant, of involvement in "global warfare and mass surveillance," citing services provided to the Israeli military and the U.S. immigration agency ICE. Banners displayed slogans such as 'Microsoft powers genocide,' and many activists wore keffiyehs. The group announced further actions, aiming to pressure Amsterdam's municipal government to halt the project, which was already in the pipeline before a city-wide construction freeze on large datacenters was announced. The project reportedly circumvented a national ban on hyperscalers by splitting it into three separate towers.