SA to tighten data centre planning rules as Tungkillo 1.2 GW proposal meets local resistance

South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas has said the state's planning rules for data centres need tighter oversight, with legislation being drafted as community opposition grows to a proposed 1,200-megawatt AI campus at Tungkillo in the Adelaide Hills. 7NEWS reported that he wants the law in place as quickly as possible because development proposals are already moving through planning processes.

Quantum DC proposes the hyperscale facility with associated energy infrastructure on Collins Road, which ABC News placed about 41 kilometres east of the Adelaide CBD. The company's project page, as described by FutureTechDose, puts the site about 55 kilometres east of Adelaide, with Stage 1 targeted for 2028 and full development by 2031. The infrastructure would cover 120 hectares of a 220-hectare site. No formal application has been lodged with state planning authorities.

Chief executive Alby Tomassi said about 80 per cent of the electricity would come from solar and wind contracts, with two on-site substations connecting to existing ElectraNet lines. An on-site gas-fired power station would provide firming capacity, and rainwater would meet the water needs rather than the River Murray or existing groundwater, Tomassi said. FutureTechDose noted the company estimates about 20 megalitres of water a year at full operation, and that construction water requirements are still being assessed. It also cautioned that the plan is not a zero-emissions design and that the self-supply claim will need independent modelling and regulatory scrutiny.

Quantum DC postponed two consultation sessions that had been scheduled for the week of the protests and rescheduled them for 20 and 21 November. ABC News reported the postponement followed safety concerns, while 7NEWS said the sessions were cancelled after a bomb threat. Residents held their own meeting at Tungkillo on Thursday and a rally at Mannum on Saturday 31 October 2026. Organiser Magdalene Lippett said residents had raised concerns about land use, water supplies, noise and light pollution, and that the community would pursue every legal avenue. Lippett said, "We're not going away," and argued there must be a point where the state questions the trade-offs for primary production and local lifestyles.

Tomassi said engagement before lodgement was deliberate, and that a summary of what the company heard will accompany its application. Planning Minister Nick Champion said any application would go through a "rigorous planning system", including power and water requirements. Champion said the government would decide whether the State Commission Assessment Panel or the minister assesses it.

Opposition and crossbench figures addressed the Mannum rally, though government members did not attend. The Liberals, Greens and One Nation back the local campaign but differ on approach. Greens leader Robert Simms called for a moratorium on new data centres and for them to be included in the royal commission. Malinauskas has ruled out examining data centres under his proposed Royal Commission into artificial intelligence. The Premier said data centres should not be built where they can affect communities, and said, "We don't want unregulated growth of data centres in South Australia," he said.

Other projects are in the pipeline: Firmus Technologies is pursuing AI factory developments near Tailem Bend and Stirling North, and IREN has proposed an 800-megawatt campus at Bundey in the Mid North. Data centres already operate in Adelaide's CBD, Kidman Park, Hawthorn, Mawson Lakes and Pooraka.