Private prototype. Facts from research on 2 to 3 October 2026; not yet reviewed for publication. Forms do not submit.

All schemes

Being built - more to decideNorth East, England

QTS Cambois Data Centre Campus (former Blyth Power Station site)

Outline permission for up to 10 data centre buildings was granted unanimously by the Strategic Planning Committee on 4 March 2025. Reserved matters for Phase 1 (the first two buildings) were granted on 2 December 2025, site preparation is under way, and reserved matters for Phases B and C (enabling works for data centres 03 and 04) were reported as submitted in June 2026 and not yet found decided. [S1] [S2] [S3] [S5] [S7] [S12] [S13]

Key facts

Status
Being built - more to decide (under construction) [S1] [S2] [S3] [S5] [S7] [S12] [S13]
Decided by
Northumberland County Council (Strategic Planning Committee) [S1] [S2]
Applicant
Quality Technology Services (QTS), applicant/operator; land financed by Renaissance Land [S1] [S4] [S5]
Developer or backer
Blackstone
References
24/04112/OUTES; 25/02911/REM; 24/02947/SCOPE
Location
Former Blyth Power Station site, northern side of Cambois, near Blyth, Northumberland. Site area reported variously as 102 ha (235 acres), 54 ha (enabling-works area) and about 250 acres. [S1] [S4] [S6] [S9]
IT capacity
720MW [S1] [S6] [S8] [S9]
Total power
1100MW [S1] [S6] [S8] [S9]
Site area
102 ha [S1] [S6] [S8] [S9]
Buildings
Up to 10 data centre buildings, five phases [S1] [S6] [S8] [S9]
Investment (claimed)
GBP10bn (claimed by developer and council) [S1] [S6] [S8] [S9]
Backup generators
55 external diesel generators per building (Phase 1 reserved matters coverage), providing up to 48 hours of emergency power. An aggregator gives 580 across the campus, which does not match 55 x 10. [S3] [S6] [S8] [S9]
Cooling and water
Closed-loop cooling with roof-mounted chillers (Phase 1 coverage). Water-free air cooling claimed by one aggregator. Not checked against the Environment Statement. [S3] [S6] [S8] [S9]
Designations
Open Mosaic Habitat on site (Protect the Wild, a campaigner claim); Near coastal SSSIs (Protect the Wild) [S1] [S6] [S16]
Previous use
Former Blyth Power Station site [S1] [S6] [S16]
Environmental assessment
EIA development (application suffix OUTES); Environmental Statement submitted; scoping reference 24/02947/SCOPE as quoted by Place North East. [S1] [S6] [S16]

Timeline

  1. 4 March 2025
    Strategic Planning Committee grants outline permission 24/04112/OUTES unanimously (s106: GBP40,000 wader habitat mitigation, employment and training plan, local supplier strategy). [S1]
  2. 5 March 2025
    Press coverage of the March 2025 approval (Construction Enquirer, Gazette) - these are publication dates, not the decision date. [S10]
  3. 8 May 2025
    Decision date shown by one tracker (aggregator, level 7); possibly the date the formal decision notice issued. Not confirmed from a primary source. [S8]
  4. 26 August 2025
    Reserved matters for Phase A enabling works reported as approved (press date; application reference and exact decision date not captured). [S4]
  5. 2 December 2025
    Strategic Planning Committee grants reserved matters 25/02911/REM for Phase 1: two data centre buildings, gatehouse and infrastructure. Unanimous; no objections recorded in minutes. [S2] [S3]
  6. 10 April 2026
    QTS says it has started preparing the site and plans piling for the first building in spring 2026, after OpenAI paused its separate Stargate UK scheme. [S5] [S12]
  7. 8 June 2026
    Reserved matters for Phases B and C (site clearance, earthworks, piling platforms for data centres 03 and 04) reported as submitted. [S11]
  8. 19 August 2026
    Local residents reported meeting outside the QTS site each Wednesday to leaflet and call for a pause. [S14]
  9. 9 September 2026
    MP Ian Lavery urges the Prime Minister to block further data centre developments in Blyth and Ashington; describes QTS construction as underway. [S15]
  10. 30 September 2026
    Protect the Wild raises cumulative habitat impact of the Cambois cluster and calls for a pause. [S16]

Politicians and organisations

  • Ian Lavery MP (Blyth and Ashington): calls for a moratorium and a Critical National Infrastructure Levy (2026-09-09)
  • Glen Sanderson, council leader (Conservative): 'a limit' to the number of data centres in Northumberland (2026-09-17), though he welcomed QTS in March 2025
  • Kim McGuinness, North East Mayor: 'people over infrastructure' (2026-09-24)
  • Protect the Wild
  • Informal residents' group meeting weekly outside the site
  • Global Action Plan (national moratorium call, quoted by LBC)

Claims

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

  • QTS / Northumberland County Council press release as reported (developer): GBP10bn investment; 1,200 long-term construction jobs; hundreds of operational jobs; about 2,700 indirect jobs; GBP110m regional fund [S1] [S10]
  • QTS as reported by Place North East / Gazette (developer): 400 direct operational jobs [S2] [S3]
  • Protect the Wild (Glen Black) (campaigners): Cumulative habitat loss from Cambois cluster 'can't be replaced'; schemes should be assessed in combination [S16]
  • Local residents and Foxglove (Donald Campbell, quoted by LBC) (campaigners): Data centres will bring few long-term jobs; water and power demand [S14] [S17]

Campaigns

Sources

  1. [S1] Strategic Planning Committee 4 March 2025, application 24/04112/OUTES (minutes summary). Northumberland County Council, 4 March 2025. Level 1 source.
  2. [S2] Strategic Planning Committee 2 December 2025, application 25/02911/REM (minutes summary). Northumberland County Council, 2 December 2025. Level 1 source.
  3. [S3] Northumberland data centre project hits another milestone with key planning approval. Northumberland Gazette, 2 December 2025. Level 4 source.
  4. [S4] Plans in for first phase of Cambois Data Centre Campus. Place North East. Level 4 source.
  5. [S5] QTS doubles down as OpenAI pauses North East data centre ambitions. Place North East, 13 April 2026. Level 4 source.
  6. [S6] QTS fleshes out GBP10bn hyperscale data centre vision. Place North East, 3 September 2024. Level 4 source.
  7. [S7] Unanimous approval for first Cambois data centres. Place North East, 2 December 2025. Level 4 source.
  8. [S8] Cambois data centre campus - UK data centre project profile. AI Energy Intelligence (aggregator). Level 7 source.
  9. [S9] The edge of the visible: Cambois data centre. North East Bylines. Level 4 source.
  10. [S10] Council approves 'once-in-a-lifetime' data centre plan for Cambois. Northumberland Gazette, 4 March 2025. Level 4 source.
  11. [S11] Plans in for next stage of GBP10bn Cambois data centre. Place North East, 8 June 2026. Level 4 source.
  12. [S12] QTS 'committed' to data centre project in Northumberland after OpenAI pauses project. Northumberland Gazette, 10 April 2026. Level 4 source.
  13. [S13] Green light for GBP10bn data hub prep works in Northumberland. Construction Enquirer, 26 August 2025. Level 4 source.
  14. [S14] Campaigners call for a pause on Cambois data centre plans amid environmental concerns. Northumberland Gazette, 19 August 2026. Level 4 source.
  15. [S15] MP urges Prime Minister to block further data centre developments in Blyth and Ashington. Northumberland Gazette, 9 September 2026. Level 4 source.
  16. [S16] Northumberland data centres: Wildlife group warns of combined impact on nature. Northumberland Gazette, 30 September 2026. Level 4 source.
  17. [S17] 'Dumping ground for data centres': locals 'extremely worried'. LBC. Level 4 source.
  18. [S18] Warning there is a 'limit' to the number of data centres Northumberland can house. Northumberland Gazette, 17 September 2026. Level 4 source.