Back to the tracker

Era4 AI data centre, Shelford Landfill, Broad Oak, Sturry, Canterbury

Canterbury, South EastApproved

Small AI data centre (about 1,210 sqm) beside Shelford Landfill, powered by landfill gas from the neighbouring Valencia Energy Centre plus solar. Canterbury City Council planning committee approved it on 13 October 2026 after a call-in by Sturry ward councillors.

Reality Score

25Speculative
How we score
Planning18/25
Grid connection0/25
Land and funding0/20
Delivery team0/15
Momentum7/15

Not buying yet. These projects in South East score Building or Likely:

Get the list of projects buying now →

Key facts

Operator / developer
Era4 (formerly Carbon3ai)
Location
Canterbury, South East, United Kingdom
Status
Approved
Facility type
Data centre
AI relevance
Not stated
Floor area
1,210 m²

Power & grid

Grid connection
No grid connection stated; private wire from the neighbouring landfill-gas plant.
On-site generation
Private wire to Valencia Energy Centre landfill-gas generation station at Shelford; rooftop solar planned.
Water
South East Water limit of 20 m3 per day; estimated 2,000 to 3,000 m3 per year at full use.

Planning

Planning route
Local planning (TCPA)
Planning decision
Approved at planning committee 13 Oct 2026 (4 for, 1 against, 3 abstentions); decision notice not yet seen
Decision date
13 October 2026

Timeline

  1. Canterbury City Council planning committee approves the scheme (4 for, 1 against, 3 abstentions); decision notice not yet seen.

    Source

Sources

Last verified

24 October 2026

Entering the UK data-centre market?

Our 3-week Market Entry Sprint shows which projects to chase, who buys the packages, and what to do in the next 90 days. Built on the same sourced data as this tracker.

Email me when this changes

Get an email when we update this project's published record.