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TL;DR
Police said 218 people were arrested on suspicion of trespassing after protesters entered a data center construction site in Amsterdam-West on November 6; all have since been released. The protest reflects a wider European dispute over data centers’ electricity use, water, land and role in expanding AI capacity, while the project’s developer and Microsoft defend the development and its safety measures.
Police in Amsterdam said 218 people were arrested after protesters entered a data center construction site in the city’s Westpoort port area on Friday, November 6, and all have since been released. The site is being developed by Pure DC for Microsoft, and the protest has brought European concerns about data centers’ power demand, water use and local effects into sharper focus.
Protesters entered the fenced construction site, climbed a crane and the building roof, lit flares and displayed banners opposing AI and Microsoft, according to reporting by Reuters and Dutch outlets NOS and AT5. Police said a fence was cut open. Riot police cleared the site after officers gave those inside time to leave. One officer was slightly injured, according to the source material.
Police initially estimated that 150 to 200 people had been arrested on suspicion of trespassing. A police spokesperson later told Dutch news agency ANP that the final count was 218 arrests and that everyone had been released, including one person held overnight. The site owner has filed a complaint alleging trespassing, vandalism and burglary. Those are allegations; no court ruling is reported.
Accounts of the crowd size differ. A Reuters witness saw around 100 people on the site, while organisers described several hundred; a campaigner quoted by Bloomberg put the total at about 400. The protest was linked to a European campaign called Stop Dirty Data Centres. Reuters reported actions in 16 countries, while organisers cited by AP and AFP said 15. The coalition’s website listed 85 events, including activities other than site protests.
Infographic 01 · What happened, and what is only claimed
One day at a data center construction site
The police account as reported by Dutch media, checked against independent reporting. What we could not confirm stays out.
People arrested on suspicion of trespassing on November 6, 2026, all released by the next day, according to a police spokesperson quoted by ANP.
How many were there?
The sources do not agree; we give the range
- Before noonGroup stopped on the way with an angle grinder and climbing gearPolice: "resistance and with it confrontations"✓ Police account
- Around noonFence cut open; people on the site, on a crane and on the roofReuters witness: around 100 on the site; organisers: several hundred✓ Confirmed
- Afternoon10 minutes to leave, then riot police clear the siteOne officer slightly injured✓ Confirmed
- EveningPolice estimate: 150 to 200 arrests for suspected trespassing✓ Confirmed
- SaturdayFinal count 218, all releasedComplaint by the site owner for trespassing, vandalism and burglary: allegations, no ruling! Alleged
- Online claimSite attacked earlier with balloons of an acidic mixtureOne report only, no police confirmation✕ Left out
Sources: police statements via ANP, NOS and AT5 / NH Nieuws · Reuters · AP.
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The Fight Over Amsterdam’s Grid
The dispute is about more than a single construction site. Data centers supply computing capacity used by cloud services and AI, but they also require large amounts of electricity and infrastructure. The European Commission, citing the International Energy Agency, estimates that EU data centers used 70 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2024, with consumption projected to reach 115 terawatt-hours by 2030. The projection is not a measure of what this Amsterdam project alone will consume.
Opponents argue that large facilities can add pressure to power grids, compete with housing and other users for connections, and raise questions about water and climate commitments. The coalition also points to local employment and surveillance. These are campaign concerns, not findings established by the arrest figures. In Ireland, data centers accounted for 22% of metered electricity in 2024, according to the source material, illustrating why the issue has become politically salient in some European countries.
There is also a competing policy interest: Europe wants more computing capacity of its own. Microsoft has promised to grow its European data center capacity by 40%, according to the source material. Decisions on projects such as AMS01 therefore touch both the expansion of digital infrastructure and the local costs and limits of providing power, water and land.
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What AMS01 Is Designed to Build
Pure DC, a British developer, is constructing the project known as AMS01; Microsoft is the tenant, not the builder. Pure DC says the plan includes three 85-metre towers, each with 26 megawatts of data halls, for a total of 78 megawatts. The company puts the investment at more than €1 billion and says the project will have its own substation.
Pure DC says construction employment will peak at 1,100 workers in 2027, with more than 80 permanent jobs afterward. It also estimates about €4 million a year in taxes and city revenue. These figures are company projections. The developer says cooling will use non-potable water from the port’s industrial supply rather than drinking water, and that the design is intended to export waste heat. The heat exchange was still being planned with Vattenfall, according to the company.
Amsterdam has acknowledged a broader constraint on development: the city has allowed no new large data centers since June 2025, according to the source material. That policy provides local context for the protest, but the material does not explain how the existing AMS01 project relates to the restriction or what permits govern its construction.
““We understand that people feel strongly about the project, and we respect their right to express those views peacefully. However, we do not condone any actions that are unlawful or that put people’s safety at risk.””
— Microsoft
Open Questions on Costs and Permits
The available accounts do not establish the protest’s exact total crowd size or provide a complete, independently verified count of people who entered the site. Police have reported arrests and the site owner’s complaint, but the allegations of vandalism and burglary have not been tested in court. All 218 arrested people have been released; release does not resolve whether any charges will follow.
The project’s local effects also remain contested. Pure DC’s employment, tax, water and energy-efficiency figures are company statements, and the source material does not provide independent verification of them. The projected waste-heat connection was still being planned. It is also unclear from the available information how much electricity AMS01 will use once operating, what its connection means for other proposed users, or how the city’s restriction on new large data centers applies to this development.
Permitting and Protest Follow-Up
Police may continue investigating the site owner’s complaint, but no further investigative steps, charges or court dates are specified in the available reports. The next legal development will clarify whether any of the allegations lead to formal proceedings.
For the project, attention will turn to construction progress and unresolved infrastructure plans, including the proposed waste-heat exchange with Vattenfall. Pure DC’s stated construction-employment peak is in 2027; that is a company projection, not a confirmed schedule for all work. The wider European campaign is also continuing, although its reported country count varies by source and its listed events include more than direct-action protests.
Key Questions
What happened at the Amsterdam data center site?
Protesters entered the Pure DC construction site in Westpoort, where they climbed a crane and the building roof and displayed banners. Riot police later cleared the site.
How many people were arrested, and were they released?
Police reported 218 arrests on suspicion of trespassing. A police spokesperson told ANP that all those arrested had been released, including one person held overnight.
Is Microsoft building the data center?
No. Pure DC is the developer, and Microsoft is the tenant, according to the source material.
Why are activists opposing data centers?
The campaign cites concerns about electricity demand, grid access, water, climate goals, local jobs and surveillance. These are the coalition’s stated concerns; the available reporting does not establish the local effect of AMS01 on each issue.
What remains unresolved about the project?
The available information does not specify AMS01’s expected operating electricity consumption or the final arrangements for exporting waste heat. The site owner’s allegations are also unresolved, and no court ruling is reported.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
