BCS Consultancy launches data centre power division
Author: Joe Peck
BCS Consultancy, a global data centre consultancy, has launched a new Power Infrastructure division to help investors, developers, and operators address power requirements for data centre developments.
Formerly operating as BCS’s Utilities team, the division reflects changes in the scale and complexity of power requirements as data centre development increases, driven in part by AI and more power-intensive workloads.
Electricity network capacity, grid connection times, planning requirements, and infrastructure delivery are increasingly influencing whether proposed data centre developments can progress from the pipeline to operational capacity.
BCS’s Data Centre Truths 2026 research found that 93% of industry respondents expect demand to continue rising, despite power supply becoming harder to secure.
The consultancy says power availability is increasingly influencing site selection and investment decisions, with grid access alone no longer sufficient. Developers also need to establish whether power can be delivered to a site within a commercially viable timeframe.
The Power Infrastructure division builds on more than 50 power infrastructure projects across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, as well as other regions. Its work covers power strategy and grid connections through to substations, cable routes, microgrids, and other power infrastructure.
Led by Cameron Thompson (pictured above), previously Head of Utilities and now Head of Power Infrastructure at BCS Consultancy, the team will work with investors, landowners, developers, and operators from early-stage power planning through to infrastructure delivery.
With some grid connection offers now extending into the 2030s, BCS is also working on alternative and transitional power strategies, including combinations of on-site generation, solar, and battery storage alongside longer-term grid connections.
Power planning moves earlier in development
Cameron Thompson, Head of Power Infrastructure at BCS Consultancy, says, “Power has always been fundamental to data centre development, but the conversation has shifted. Clients are coming to us much earlier, asking how they can make sites viable within the timeframes they need.
“Power Infrastructure reflects that shift. By bringing strategy and delivery together, we can give clients a clear route to power, from early planning through to an energised site.”
The division will coordinate power programmes across network operators, designers, original equipment manufacturers, contractors, land and planning teams, and other stakeholders.
BCS says this coordination is becoming more important as power programmes increase in complexity, with delays often arising at the interfaces between grid connections and delivery. These can include design approvals, cable routes and land rights, long-lead equipment, civil engineering readiness, commissioning, and network witnessing.
Chris Coward, COO of BCS Consultancy, comments, “Power increasingly determines where and when data centre projects can happen and, ultimately, whether they are commercially viable.
“As the market shifts from announcing capacity to proving what can actually be delivered, clients need much greater certainty earlier in the development process.
“Expanding our Power Infrastructure capability is a direct response to that shift. By combining specialist power strategy with our data centre land intelligence and delivery expertise, we can help clients make better decisions from the outset and support them all the way through to delivery and energisation.”
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