Nscale Loughton AI data centre campus (Langston Road)

Key facts

Status

Approved - but it's not over (approved) ^{[S7] [S8] [S9] [S16] [S18]}

Decided by

Epping Forest District Council (planning officers, reportedly under delegated powers with no committee hearing) ^{[S8] [S9] [S16]}

Applicant

Nscale (operator and developer); original outline applicant Alandale Scaffolding ^{[S1] [S7] [S8] [S12]}

End user (reported)

Microsoft reported as anchor tenant (Data Centre Review, Capacity); a directory also lists Google as having secured capacity in April 2026 (lead only, unconfirmed)

References

EPF/1165/22; EPF/1136/19; EPF/0678/26

Location

Alandale Scaffolding yard, Langston Road, Loughton (Debden area), Epping Forest district, Essex, near Debden station and the Bank of England printing works. Reported as a four acre site. The Town Council noted in 2023 that the site appeared to encroach on adjacent Green Belt land at the rear; whether the site itself is Green Belt is not confirmed. ^{[S1] [S2] [S10] [S15]}

IT capacity

50MW ^{[S6] [S7] [S10] [S12] [S15]}

Total power

90MW ^{[S6] [S7] [S10] [S12] [S15]}

Site area

1.6 ha ^{[S6] [S7] [S10] [S12] [S15]}

Buildings

Originally a three-storey building with rooftop plant, substation and offices (outline); the revised scheme is reported as 50% higher with 50% more internal capacity ^{[S6] [S7] [S10] [S12] [S15]}

Investment (claimed)

£2 billion (claimed by developer) ^{[S6] [S7] [S10] [S12] [S15]}

On-site generation

Nscale reported to be exploring on-site generation; Data Centre Review (14 July 2026) reports Bloom Energy solid oxide fuel cells running on natural gas. No planning application for this found. ^{[S6] [S7] [S9] [S12] [S18]}

Cooling and water

Liquid cooling claimed (directory, lead only). Taller building said to need substantially more cooling and energy (Data Centre Review). A Substack summary says officers treated energy and water regulation as outside planning's scope and noise as controllable by conditions (secondary). ^{[S6] [S7] [S9] [S12] [S18]}

Designations

Green Belt adjoins the rear of the site (Town Council, 2023); site status not confirmed ^{[S1] [S10] [S18]}

Previous use

Working scaffolding yard (cleared by September 2026 per Resultsense); site had earlier lapsed data centre permissions (2007 to 2019) ^{[S1] [S10] [S18]}

Timeline

1. 2013
   Permission granted for a 13,000 sq m data centre on the site (year only); later permission in 2019 (EPF/1136/19) lapsed ^[S10]
2. 20 February 2023
   Loughton Town Council planning committee had no objection to EPF/1165/22 but asked for tinted glass to protect bats and moths and for enforcement to check boundary creep onto Green Belt ^[S1]
3. 2024
   Outline permission EPF/1165/22 granted (year only, per press; Loughton Residents Association said in January 2025 it was granted 'last year') ^{[S6] [S13]}
4. 16 January 2025
   Nscale announced a £2bn, 50MW AI data centre at Langston Road with 750 jobs; local residents' association noted no application had yet been submitted by Nscale ^{[S15] [S13]}
5. 2025-11
   Minister for Investment Lord Stockwood wrote to Epping Forest District Council's chief executive backing the project (month only; reported by Capacity and a Substack) ^{[S8] [S9]}
6. 2026-02
   Revised documents for the larger scheme reported as submitted (month only; Substack) ^[S9]
7. 30 March 2026
   Data Centre Review reported the revised proposal as 50% higher with 50% more internal capacity, with officers calling for a fresh application and Nscale saying construction would start in Q2 2026 ^[S6]
8. 27 April 2026
   Loughton Town Council noted EPF/0678/26 (contaminated land details under condition 4 of EPF/1165/22) ^[S2]
9. 2026-06
   Epping Forest District Council granted permission for the revised scheme, according to Capacity (6 July 2026) and a Substack that says planning officers decided it; month only, application reference not found ^{[S8] [S9] [S16]}
10. 2 July 2026
    Two Change.org petitions created (Loughton-specific, and a ban on data centres within 10 miles of Epping Forest) ^{[S16] [S17]}
11. 14 July 2026
    Data Centre Review reported grid delays beyond 2027 and Bloom Energy gas fuel cells as an alternative power source ^[S7]
12. 25 September 2026
    Resultsense reported adequate grid power not expected until the early to mid 2030s, citing the Guardian ^[S18]

Statutory consultees

Politicians and organisations

• Cllr Stephen Murray urged 'very careful and detailed consideration' (January 2025)
• Lord Stockwood, Minister for Investment, wrote to the council backing the project (November 2025, reported)
• Loughton Town Council
• Loughton Residents Association planning group (in 2023 asked for checks on water cooling, electricity use and a junction contribution)
• Local residents' petitions (see existing_campaigns)

Claims

Claims by developers, campaigners or councils, recorded as claims and not checked as fact.

• Nscale (developer): £2bn investment, 50MW capacity, 750 jobs (500 during construction, 250 operational), live in 2026; site of 'UK's largest AI data centre' ^[S15]
• Nscale (to Data Centre Review) (developer): Site investigation and permit work under way, construction from Q2 2026 and operation from Q2 2027; timeline changes due to installing the latest Vera Rubin technology rather than planning delay ^[S6]
• Nscale (as reported by a directory, lead only) (developer): Clean energy and advanced liquid cooling; up to 45,000 Nvidia GB200 GPUs; expansion potential to 90MW ^[S12]
• Lord Stockwood, Minister for Investment, letter to the council chief executive (reported) (other): 'This Government is keen to see the successful delivery of this site' ^[S8]
• Loughton Town Council, councillors, local committees and residents as reported (campaigners): Expansion would strain electricity infrastructure and increase water and energy use; no independent verification of grid capacity; heritage assessment missing ^{[S6] [S8] [S9]}
• Celeste Richardson, petition starter (campaigners): The development was agreed without a committee hearing and residents were told nothing can change the decision ^[S16]

Campaigns

• Oppose the proposed AI data centre in Loughton (1,509 signatures)
• Ban data centres within 10 miles of Epping Forest (regional; about three planned hyperscale AI data centres near the forest, not named on the page) (6,223 signatures)

Sources

1. [S1] Planning and Licensing Committee minutes 20 February 2023 (EPF/1165/22, Alandale Scaffolding, Langston Road: no objection with two requested conditions). Loughton Town Council, 20 February 2023. Level 2 source.
2. [S2] Planning and Licensing Committee draft minutes 27 April 2026 (EPF/0678/26 approval of details reserved by condition 4 of EPF/1165/22). Loughton Town Council, 27 April 2026. Level 2 source.
3. [S3] Planning and Licensing Committee draft minutes 30 March 2026 (no data centre item). Loughton Town Council, 30 March 2026. Level 2 source.
4. [S4] Planning and Licensing Committee minutes 13 April 2026 (no data centre item). Loughton Town Council, 13 April 2026. Level 2 source.
5. [S5] Planning and Licensing Committee minutes 2025-26 compilation (no data centre item). Loughton Town Council. Level 2 source.
6. [S6] Nscale latest to face public backlash over proposed data centre. Data Centre Review, 30 March 2026. Level 5 source.
7. [S7] Nscale's £2bn Essex data centre hit by grid delays. Data Centre Review, 14 July 2026. Level 5 source.
8. [S8] UK government reportedly urged Nscale AI data centre approval. Capacity, 6 July 2026. Level 5 source.
9. [S9] Did Labour AI generate investment deals? (Substack; says officers granted permission in June 2026 and cites officers' reasons). Ben Smoke, We Fight The Good Fight. Level 6 source.
10. [S10] Three-story data center planned in Loughton, northeast London. DatacenterDynamics, 16 February 2023. Level 5 source.
11. [S11] Nscale: Loughton, Essex Data Center News. Baxtel. Level 7 source.
12. [S12] Nscale Loughton Data Center in Essex. datacentermap.com. Level 7 source.
13. [S13] LRA's Loughton News 17 January 2025. Loughton Residents Association, 17 January 2025. Level 6 source.
14. [S14] LRA's Loughton News 3 March 2023. Loughton Residents Association, 3 March 2023. Level 6 source.
15. [S15] UK's largest AI data centre planned for Essex, creating 750 jobs. Workplace Journal, 16 January 2025. Level 5 source.
16. [S16] Petition: Oppose the proposed AI data centre in Loughton. Change.org, 2 July 2026. Level 6 source.
17. [S17] Petition: Ban data centres within 10 miles of Epping Forest. Change.org, 2 July 2026. Level 6 source.
18. [S18] Nscale's Loughton AI data centre faces power wait to 2030s. Resultsense, 25 September 2026. Level 7 source.