July 29, 2026 • 3 min read
Worley brings together industry leaders at Princeton University to explore the future of data centers
As AI drives an unprecedented wave of data center investment, Worley brought together senior leaders from across technology to tackle a critical question:
How can data centers be delivered at speed without compromising community needs, sustainability and long-term value?
Hosted by Worley in collaboration with Princeton’s Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment and Deloitte, the June 17 workshop assembled organisations across the data center ecosystem such as Google, Siemens, Siemens Energy, Liberty Capital, and Nuveen at Princeton University to identify practical strategies to overcome delivery challenges and sustainability issues.
As demand for AI infrastructure accelerates, so too has the debate about data centers. The Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese recently announced plans for a national AI framework and new standards for large‑scale data centers, underscoring the growing focus on issues including power, water and community impacts. At the workshop, participants explored these very challenges: how to quickly deliver and scale the next generation of data centers while maintaining community trust, safeguarding critical resources and strengthening long‑term competitiveness.
Breakout sessions
During the day-long workshop, small groups of five to eight participants worked in breakout sessions to identify where compromise may be possible as well as points that were non‑negotiable.
Discussions focused on areas requiring early action, including policy and regulation, power and water availability, sustainability, community engagement and supply‑chain capability.
Participants developed a set of potential ‘Golden Rules’ for durable data center development, including aligned financing and risk, responsible resource stewardship, early community engagement, resilient workforces and supply chains, and transparent governance.
While profitability remained important, participants emphasised that long‑term value will increasingly depend on community engagement and acceptance, sustainability performance, reliable access to power and water, and the ability to adapt as technology evolves.
Participants also identified regulatory reform as a top priority, with the recent announcement by Prime Minister Albanese highlighting the increasing attention governments are paying to the policy, infrastructure and community impacts associated with data center growth. Supply chain constraints, including equipment availability, and workforce capability, were also seen as recurring challenges.
Working with communities
“Community impact and engagement emerged as one of the most important topics of the day,” said Clare Anderson, Group Director, Sustainability, who was one of the workshop moderators. “Participants stressed that data center developers need to address concerns around energy demand, water use, land impacts and local benefits early in the project lifecycle. Building and maintaining trust with host communities was widely viewed as critical to securing social licence and long-term project success.”
Participants agreed that planning for durable, sustainable outcomes is vital to a project’s stability, leasing potential and resale value.
Low or net zero carbon infrastructure and onsite power generation could help future‑proof developments, workshop participants agreed. So too could smarter management and repeatable design approaches, drawing on proven engineering, technology and operating models.
Many themes raised during the workshop align with findings from Worley’s From Ambition to Reality series, developed in partnership with Princeton University, including permitting, power availability, supply chains, policy certainty and community trust.
“It’s important that industries come together to find solutions – data centers are rapidly becoming critical infrastructure,” said Fabricio Sousa, President, Worley Consulting and Technology Solutions. “As the pace and scale of development accelerates, decisions made today around power, water, permitting, community impacts and sustainability will shape not only the performance of these assets, but also their impact on the energy systems, communities and economies that depend on them.”
The workshop marks the beginning of a broader series exploring the Golden Rules for durable data center development – and how the industry can help grow the AI economy while creating lasting value for communities, investors and energy systems.
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