Summary
- Around 300 people reportedly protested the proposal on 10 October.
- A petition opposing the scheme has exceeded 22,500 signatures.
- The former Ferodo site application is still undergoing planning assessment.
Around 300 demonstrators protested a proposed data centre campus near the Menai Strait on 10 October, and a petition against the former Ferodo site proposal was reported to have exceeded 22,500 signatures. These are separate forms of opposition, not votes on the planning application. The planning application remains under consideration, and the protest is not a formal refusal by the planning authority.
The site lies near Griffiths Crossing between Caernarfon and Y Felinheli in north-west Wales. An outline application submitted by Gwelyfenai Ltd seeks permission for demolition, land regrading and the construction of data centre buildings with supporting generators, electrical plant, substations, roads, drainage and service connections.
The environmental statement notice identifies Gwynedd Council’s application reference as C25/0740/20/EIA. An outline application with matters reserved sets the proposed development framework but leaves aspects of detailed design to later submissions. Even a favourable outline decision would not be evidence that the proposed campus had already secured electrical supply or begun operating.
Electricity, landscape and water under scrutiny
Specialist reporting describes a development area of around 41 hectares and a proposed connection of up to 450MW, with as many as five data centre buildings. Those figures should be treated as reported project parameters pending confirmation against the full application documents. A proposed electrical connection is not the same thing as an approved or energised 450MW supply.
Opponents have cited effects on the landscape, water resources and wildlife. Those concerns must be assessed against the submitted environmental documentation and any responses from statutory consultees, rather than presumed to be established impacts merely because a petition has attracted support.
Data centre proposals of this size introduce land-use questions alongside construction impacts. Backup generation needs fuel, emissions and noise controls, while cooling equipment can affect external plant layout and water arrangements. Access works, ecological mitigation and transmission infrastructure may extend beyond the building footprints. The outcome depends on the actual technology and mitigation proposed, not a generic assumption about all data centres.
The site’s earlier industrial use offers a possible redevelopment context. It does not mean existing buildings, utilities or ground conditions are immediately suitable for high-density computing. Decommissioning, remediation, structural works and new substation infrastructure may be required if a project eventually proceeds.
Reports put attendance at the 10 October demonstration at around 300 people. The larger petition total indicates broader recorded opposition, but neither number is a substitute for the planning process’s statutory consultation record, and neither establishes a final decision by elected councillors or planning officers.
The protest and petition add to the public representations around the application but are not a statutory decision, nor do the reports document a new official request for information. A review of the full environmental statement would be needed to determine the developer’s modelled cooling-water demand, backup-generator duty cycle and construction traffic impacts. Assertions about those quantities should not be extrapolated from headline electrical capacity. The correct next milestone is a formal planning decision, not the size of a demonstration alone.
Gwynedd Council must assess the submitted outline application, environmental statement and representations before reaching a planning decision. Construction, grid connection and commercial occupancy would require further steps even if permission were granted. Neither the protest nor petition decides the application.
