Protesters march through Cardiff Bay against controversial data centre plans

Kieran Molloy, Local Democracy Reporter

A group of 70 protesters marched through Cardiff Bay in opposition to a controversial bid to build a data centre.

In 2026 Curtis Hall Ltd put plans to Cardiff council to construct a data centre on the site of the east Cardiff park and ride.

The plans have been met with months of opposition from MSs, councillors, members of the local community, and activists who cite the loss of the park and ride, noise, pollution, and other environmental factors as reasons for their opposition.

Curtis Hall has previously denied the data centre will cause a significant negative impact to the local community and have agreed to find a replacement site for the park and ride before construction, if the plans are approved.

Despite a planned special meeting to discuss the data centre on Thursday being cancelled due to a Welsh Government decision to call in the application and determine it, a group of protesters led by ACORN, a tenants union, marched on both Cardiff County Hall and the Senedd to voice their opposition to the data centre.

Nick Carter MS, who represents the Caerdydd Ffynnon Taf constituency, joined the protesters outside county hall.

He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “I’m really pleased that the government has called it in.

“I was worried that it was being steamrolled and that the council was rushing this development, which is just so unpopular with the local community.”

He continued: “I personally find it hard to believe that anyone in their right mind could think [the park and ride] is the right place for a data centre.”

Ditch the data centre

The protesters, some carrying drums, chanted “ditch the data centre, save the park and ride” outside of Cardiff council’ headquarters.

Last week, ahead of the special planning meeting on November 12, the council published papers recommending the application for approval, reasoning that the economic benefits outweighed the potential impact on the environment.

On November 11 a special planning meeting was cancelled due to the Welsh Government deciding to call in the application.

This means Welsh ministers will now decide whether to approve the application or not.

A letter sent to the council reads: “Wide interest in the environmental impact and the policy in relation to data centres means the case has generated substantial controversy beyond the immediate locality.

“All these matters lead the cabinet minister to conclude the development is of more than local importance and the applications should be determined by the Welsh ministers.”

Positive victory 

After a series of speeches outside county hall in which ACORN members raised their concerns about the proposal, the demonstrators marched through the Red Dragon Centre and continued the protest on the steps of the Senedd where more speeches, chants, and drum-playing were heard.

On the steps of the Senedd, Esther Jones, 25, a board member for ACORN, called the call-in decision a “really positive victory” for the group.

She said: “It shows that our demands are being listened to, but the fight is not over yet – the data centre is still a possibility and the destruction of the park and ride is still a possibility.

“We’re not going to assume that the Welsh Government is going to do the right thing – we’re going to keep the pressure on.”

Esther added: “We know best what our needs are and we know that power best lies in the hands of people who need and use the services that are on their doorsteps.

“We’re still going to hold the Welsh Government to account for that.

“They absolutely have the opportunity to show that they are responsive to the will of the community and I really hope that they do.”

‘We live there’

Another member of ACORN, Achsah Duncan, 24, told the LDRS: “At the end of the day, it’s not a question of whether or not it should be Welsh Government’s decision or Cardiff council’s decision, it should be a question of why isn’t it the community’s? We live there.”

She called the decision a “partial victory” but a “win for the community members”.

She continued: “We recognise that it is a step in a direction – whether that’s forward or backward we’re not sure but we’ll find out.”

While ACORN were the main organisers of the event, Friends of the Earth Cymru, and local residents also attended.

‘Over the moon’

After the protest, Cllr Joe Carter, who has been leading a campaign against the data centre, told the LDRS he was “absolutely over the moon” with the call-in decision.

He said: “This is a really good day for the people of Pentwyn and equally Llanrumney as well, if not all of east Cardiff.”

The developers behind the data centre plans in Cardiff argue that the scheme will bring investment to the area and create skilled jobs, adding that south Wales has a “major opportunity to become a leading centre for digital infrastructure and AI”.

The application will now be passed to Planning and Environment Decisions Wales, who will then examine it and provide a report to the cabinet minister for local government, housing and planning, Sian Gwenllian MS, to make a decision in the coming months.