Tools / Regulatory tracker / AI Growth Zones
Regulatory tracker · United Kingdom · Planning and permitting
AI Growth Zones
Designated zones with grid connection priority, planning support and a proposed electricity cost discount.
Policy Delivery plan published 13 November 2025. Zones designated include North Wales, South Wales, Culham and Lanarkshire.
What it does
The rule in brief
The delivery plan sets out grid, planning and investor measures for AI data centres in designated AI Growth Zones. It proposes removing speculative demand from the connection queue and reserving capacity for the zones, and a discount on electricity costs for eligible data centres that lower system costs: for a 500 MW data centre up to £24/MWh in Scotland, £16/MWh in Cumbria and £14/MWh in the North East, with the approach to be set after consultation. It also committed to consult on planning policy and a National Policy Statement for data centres.
Timeline
Key dates
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| 13 November 2025 | Delivering AI Growth Zones published |
| 17 August 2026 | Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone investment announced |
Found automatically
Recent official documents
Found on GOV.UK; the summary above was last reviewed on 27 October 2026.
Primary sources
Read it at source
- Delivering AI Growth Zones Government
- AI Growth Zones (collection) Government
Cite as: InfraCompute regulatory tracker, “AI Growth Zones”, checked 27 October 2026, https://www.infracompute.co.uk/tools/regulatory-tracker/uk-ai-growth-zones.
Related
Also on the tracker
Executive Order 14318: federal permitting of data centres
Faster federal permitting and financial support for data centre projects over 100 MW or $500m capex.
United Kingdom · Investment screeningNational Security and Investment Act 2021
Mandatory approval before acquiring control of a UK entity in 17 sectors, including data infrastructure and computing hardware.
United Kingdom · Cyber and resilienceCyber Security and Resilience Bill
Brings data centres of 1 MW or more (10 MW for enterprise sites) under the NIS rules, with Ofcom as regulator.
United Kingdom · Cyber and resilienceData centres designated critical national infrastructure
UK data centres were designated CNI in September 2024, alongside energy and water.
Method
Each entry is written from the official text and the government, regulator or legislature pages listed above, never from secondary commentary. New documents on GOV.UK are picked up automatically and listed here. Status and dates can change after the review date, so check the source before relying on it. General information drawn from public filings. It is not legal advice on any transaction, and using this page does not create a lawyer-client relationship. Views are personal.
