Australian data centre developer says it does not have social licence for suburban plan

SYDNEY, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Australia's biggest property company on Tuesday said it had yet to win a "social licence" to build a data centre metres from people's homes in the Sydney suburbs, after a lawmaker accused it of showing contempt for local residents.

Goodman Group GMG.AX, one of Australia's 20 largest listed companies, said it was committed to community consultation but had yet to satisfy resident concerns about an 81-megawatt data centre proposed for an industrial part of Lane Cove, a leafy, affluent suburb of about 13,000 residents.

If residents get Goodman to reconsider its plan, it would be the most direct example so far of Australian grassroots opponents forcing a rethink of data centre development.

"Clearly we've got a difference of opinion in Lane Cove with our community, and it's something that sits uncomfortably with us," Goodman's general manager of development, Ben McGilp, said at a Senate inquiry into data centres.

The hearing was held in Lane Cove, a waterside suburb about 12 km (6.2 miles) from Sydney's central business district that has emerged as a battleground in Australia's deliberations over soaring AI-led demand for data centres, echoing similar conflicts around the world.

The Australian government initially backed data centre development without hard parameters but earlier this year said it would introduce new restrictions on AI, including rules on where data centres can be built, effective early 2027.

Asked if Goodman had earned community support for the Lane Cove project, McGilp said: "I'm not suggesting we've reached ... social licence in that particular example. I think we've got work to do."

Lane Cove residents told the hearing the company's consultation process had been one-sided and consisted mostly of leaflet drops and occasional pop-up information tables.

Conservative Senator Sarah Henderson questioned how the company could contemplate building a data centre close to people's homes.

"On what planet do you think that that is acceptable to build a massive data centre 16 or 20 metres from someone's home?" she asked.

The inquiry resumes on Wednesday.