Norway built its wealth on cheap power from waterfalls. Now many fear those days are over.
AI needs data and ever more data centres. Norway's energy regulator NVE warns of a large power deficit and much higher prices if the trend continues.
Who gets the power? Microsoft will rent computing power at a new AI site in Narvik. Google is building a data centre in Skien. In Løten, TikTok is the only customer of a large data centre. TikTok says it stores European users' data there. These are the same companies that profit from our data and grow rich on AI.
Meanwhile, local people have little say. The council approves the site, and grid operator Statnett has had to say yes to ready projects. In Sirdal, a cabin owner next door was never notified.
Now people are reacting. One in two Norwegians would refuse new data centres power, a poll for Nettavisen found. On 6 and 7 November, there were protests against data centres in 15 European countries. On 9 November, Statnett paused new grid reservations for data centres, and the government announced licensing. Statnett says the pause is about the security of the power grid.
The government did not start this. People who are affected have begun to see what it may cost them, not least in higher power bills. DARA will keep following the story.
DARA covers the participation economy: who creates the value of data, and who gets it. If you have an experience or a story we should look into, send us a message.
Sources: Nettavisen: poll, November 2026, Teknisk Ukeblad (NTB), 2026, Østlendingen (NTB), October 2026, NRK, 2026, Bloomberg, 14 April 2026, Klassekampen, 10 August 2026, TikTok Newsroom, 31 October 2024, VG, 9 November 2026, NRK, Sirdal, 2026, Reuters via BusinessDay, 6 November 2026, Statnett, 9 November 2026, Capacity, 9 November 2026
All our sources are collected in the DARA Source Library.