Politics
Oakland Extends Data Center Moratorium as SF Weighs Its Own Amid Grid Strain
Oakland unanimously extended its moratorium on new data centers through October 2027, while San Francisco supervisors will vote next week on a similar 10.5-month extension following a report warning new facilities could push the city's power grid beyond its limits.
Oakland's City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to extend its moratorium on new data centers for another 10 months and 15 days, pushing the pause through October 5, 2027. The move, introduced by District 3 Councilmember Carroll Fife, gives city officials more time to assess the potential impacts of large-scale computing facilities on the local electricity grid, water supply, and air quality.
The extension comes as San Francisco's Board of Supervisors prepares to vote next Tuesday on extending its own 45-day moratorium for another 10.5 months. That decision follows a new San Francisco Planning Department report warning that additional data centers could compete with housing, hospitals, and businesses for electricity. San Francisco's transmission capacity is approximately 1,000 megawatts, and peak demand reached roughly 800 megawatts last year, leaving little headroom for new power-intensive facilities.
The report estimates that a single 50-megawatt data center could consume as much electricity as 25,000 homes. Electricity use in the city is expected to grow by as much as 20 megawatts annually as buildings electrify and other development proceeds, while a major new transmission line could take up to a decade to complete. Backup generators could add to air and noise pollution, particularly in neighborhoods already burdened by environmental hazards, and water consumption remains another concern.
San Francisco currently hosts three stand-alone data centers, and developers have explored additional projects at the shuttered San Francisco Centre mall downtown as well as in SoMa and the Dogpatch. The planning report suggests the city consider power limits, additional utility assessments for larger projects, and restrictions on stand-alone facilities in residential and commercial areas. It does not recommend whether the moratorium should be extended or establish new regulations.
In Oakland, the extension follows similar concerns. The city has received inquiries from developers, including Behring Companies, which proposed installing a data center inside a downtown office building. Those plans are now on hold. Residents have raised concerns about utility costs, water consumption, pollution, and displacement. A survey of 424 West Oakland residents conducted by Care 4 Community Action found that 73% supported a full ban on new AI data centers, while 46% expressed concern about rising utility bills.
Fife has argued that Oakland's existing infrastructure was not designed to accommodate the demands of large-scale data centers, and its planning code lacks specific regulations governing their energy and water use, noise, and backup generators. The city's Planning and Building Department is consulting with PG&E, East Bay Municipal Utility District, and Ava Community Energy to assess potential impacts on local utilities, while reviewing data center regulations adopted by other California cities.
The dual actions in Oakland and San Francisco reflect growing regional unease over the rapid buildout of energy-hungry data centers, driven in part by the artificial intelligence boom. With grid capacity tight and climate goals demanding careful management of electricity and water, local officials are signaling that they want stronger oversight before approving new facilities.