Batam Residents Protest Data Centres' Water Usage
Officials on the Indonesian island of Batam have attributed a prolonged drought to the rising number of data centres, leading to a severe water crisis for residents.
October 13, 2026
Hundreds of residents in Batam, located near Singapore, gathered for a protest at the Nongsa Digital Park, expressing their frustration over the lack of running water in their homes. The protesters, many of them women, carried empty water containers and blocked access for park workers.
"Not a single drop has come through our taps for the last three months... Our water supply had been reliable until the data centres came," said protester Dewi Susanti, as quoted by the BBC.
Currently, residents rely on water delivered by tanker trucks or purchased in drums, lasting only a day.
BP Batam, the island's trade and industry agency, denies redirecting household water to data centres. They attribute the water shortage to the ongoing drought, potentially linked to El Niño.
However, a local environmental group estimates that the Bakau Serip reservoir, serving the protesting village, could deplete within a month without rainfall.
Earlier protests occurred in August and September, leading to a directive from officials for data centre companies to implement desalination plants instead of using freshwater from local reservoirs.
Ten data centres have been cleared for operation in Batam, with six already established and another six awaiting approval. The island has seen significant investment, topping $6.7 billion, largely driven by Singapore's proximity.
Nvidia-backed Firmus announced a 360MW AI data centre on Batam in June, in collaboration with Singapore's DayOne.
Data centre power demand in Batam is projected to reach 1,100MW by 2030, according to official estimates. Across Southeast Asia, data centre investment is poised to more than double by 2031.
The water consumption of these centres remains largely undisclosed, as companies often keep such figures confidential, according to Agus Hasan, a professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.