JakartaPost-Oct 1, 2026
The West Java administration has suspended the construction of a data center in Jatiluhur, Purwakarta regency, West Java amid concerns over its environmental impact and pressure on local water reserves. The company behind the project, Singapore-based digital infrastructure firm BDx Data Centers, reportedly had yet to secure its environmental impact assessment (Amdal) and building approval (PBG). “If the permits are still being processed, then construction should not start yet,” West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi was seen telling a project consultant in a video uploaded to his Instagram account on Wednesday. He also called for the permit process to be expedited, so the project would not be considered “problematic” and to provide certainty for the investing company. Dedi attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the project on July 28, while the construction started last week.
The artificial intelligence data center, located roughly 5 kilometers from Jatiluhur Dam, has a total IT capacity of 640 megawatts (MW). The first 120 MW facility is expected to enter service in early 2027. It had secured 845 megavolt-amperes (MVA) of grid capacity from state-owned electricity company PLN, as part of more than 1.2 gigavolt-amperes (GVA) in total power capacity the firm secured across its AI campuses in Indonesia. According to a discussion posted on Dedi’s official YouTube channel, the data center will initially require 6,000 cubic meters of water every day, with the need projected to rise to a maximum of 384 liters per second over five to 10 years. The same volume of water is equivalent to the average clean water usage per day of a family of four. The water supply for the data centers will be provided gradually through an official
partnership with the local drinking water utility. The suspension announcement came amid public concerns over the data center’s water use and its potential impact on Jatiluhur Dam, which is the main water source for Greater Jakarta and agricultural irrigation for rice fields in the western part of the province. Read more at:
