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Data centre proposal sparks debate about former IBM site
Greenock planning application could see former IBM site redeveloped as a hyperscale data centre.
A planning application has been submitted by Slate Island Developments Ltd for a proposed hyperscale data centre on the former IBM site at Spango Valley in Greenock.
In 1954, IBM opened its Spango Valley operation. The facility closed in 2017, and the buildings were demolished in 2020.
The indicative proposals include four data centre buildings facilitating roughly 80,000 square metres of floorspace, as well as landscaping, parking and sustainable drainage infrastructure.
A spokesperson for Slate Island Developments Ltd said:
“Spango Valley has a proud history as a centre for technology and employment in Inverclyde, and these proposals offer an exciting opportunity to open a new chapter for this important site.
“There is now strong interest from the data centre sector, providing a real opportunity to bring this long-vacant brownfield site back into productive use”.
But according to information published by Action to Protect Rural Scotland (APRS), the proposal would replace previously approved plans for a mixed-use development that included around 450 homes, retail facilities and the reopening of the former IBM railway station as a park-and-ride facility.
The group has called on Inverclyde Council to pause consideration of the application until further information is provided.
On 18 August, Public Finance Minister Hannah Mary Goodlad announced that local authorities must notify the Scottish Government when planning applications are received for data centres with power demands greater than 50MW. APRS has questioned how this requirement would apply in cases where a development’s power capacity is not disclosed within the planning application.
APRS has written to the Scottish Government to highlight the application and to seek further scrutiny of the project. APRS is also calling for all hyperscale data centre developments to undergo Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) and for developers to submit full planning applications rather than planning permission in principle applications for projects of this scale.
Commenting on the proposal, Kat Jones, Director of Action to Protect Rural Scotland, said:
“Inverclyde council must stop the application until they can provide sufficient information about the planned development.
“This application, and the 600MW Auchtertool proposal, are perfect illustrations of why it is not appropriate for a development of this scale and impact to be allowed to submit a planning permission in principle application.”
Jones also said:
“There is an extremely narrow window of opportunity for commenting on this application and we are encouraging anyone who is concerned about this development to look at the summary we have provided on our website, which should help people to respond to the application.”
Opposition to the proposal has also been expressed by No AI Data Centres – Inverclyde. Matt Bernico, a local volunteer organiser for the group, said:
“We support Action to Protect Rural Scotland in calling for an immediate moratorium on these giant projects until full Environmental Impact Assessments are made legally mandatory.”
The proposed development would occupy the former IBM site, which currently benefits from planning permission for housing and business uses, including reopening a previously closed railway station. The group says the site’s future use is now being reconsidered through the submission of the hyperscale data centre proposal.
Speaking to the Press Association in June 2026, First Minister John Swinney said:
“What we’ve got to make a careful judgment about is whether AI data centres bring the type of economic benefits that will be of significance to Scotland, and then also about the implications for energy generation and energy use within our society.”
Public comments on the application can be submitted until 16 September.
The application for “Planning Permission in Principle for the Erection of a Data Centre (sui generis use class) with associated road access, car parking, landscaping, drainage and all associated work” was validated and went live on the Inverclyde Planning portal on 26 August 2026. Closing date for comments and objections is 16 September (labelled “Expiry Date” on the Inverclyde planning portal).
Application Reference 26/0136/IC
