Laverton North Data Centre Screening (demo)

Instructions & Purpose

Desktop site decision memo for a candidate data-centre site prior to formal feasibility: grid power at the fence, whether the site joins an existing data-centre cluster, and whether the planning pathway is open.

Answer what a data-centre site decision turns on: is power close, would it join a cluster, and can it get planning consent. OpenStreetMap and drawn-boundary facts only; firm grid capacity, fibre routes and water for cooling are separate studies, not held here.

Power at the Fence, and the Cluster Around It

How much grid power is at the fence and whether the site joins an existing data-centre cluster, from OpenStreetMap and the drawn boundary. Raw facts to size the opportunity; this is not a demand model.

Grid power

The first question for a data centre: how much power is at the fence, and the substations that would feed it.

Source: OpenStreetMap (Overpass) substations + drawn-boundary HV proximity, at build time. Presence, distance and nominal voltage only; firm connection capacity and augmentation cost are a network study.

Existing data-centre cluster

13 data centres mapped within 8 km — joining an established cluster brings the fibre, power and peering ecosystem with it.

Source: OpenStreetMap (Overpass), queried at report build time. Names are OSM labels quoted as-is; fibre routes and firm capacity are separate enquiries.

Industrial pipeline context: Wyndham

Our tracking of Wyndham is currently partial, so the LGA count understates real activity; the state-wide figures are the reliable context.

Source: DA Leads tracked application records (da_records) + ABS SAL profile.

HV proximity and substation facts are OpenStreetMap and the drawn boundary; firm connection capacity and augmentation cost are a network connection study, not held. Fibre backbone routes and carrier availability are not in our data and are not shown. Water for cooling is a utility enquiry; we do not model it. Existing data centres are OSM labels at last refresh; a market or capacity census is not made.

The Site, Zoning & the Contested Issues

The candidate site itself, then the statutory screen: 19 constraints on the four-level scale. The zone question and the issues this kind of development is typically assessed on are set out in full below; the remaining constraints are condensed into the screening table, ordered most severe first, with their full risk detail retained in the screening dataset.

The candidate site

Statutory controls over the site

No planning overlays detected over the site from available data.

1

Zoning

Insignificant

The site is zoned IN2Z - INDUSTRIAL 2 ZONE. Zoning establishes whether the proposed generation use is envisaged, assessable with consent, or prohibited, and sets the assessment pathway.

Legislation: State planning legislation and the applicable planning scheme / Planning and Design Code

Aspect	Risk	Mitigation	Rating
Applicable zone	Site zoned IN2Z - INDUSTRIAL 2 ZONE	Confirm the use is envisaged or assessable under the zone provisions	Insignificant

Required checks

• Confirm zone provisions and the assessment pathway with the planning authority

2

Noise (residential amenity)

Moderate

Noise impact was screened by distance to the nearest sensitive receptor (the closer of the nearest GNAF dwelling address point and the nearest residential zone). Combustion turbines and rotating plant emit mechanical noise; separation distance and attenuation determine compliance with the state noise policy.

Legislation: Environment Protection Regulations 2021 (Vic) noise provisions

Aspect	Risk	Mitigation	Rating
Noise at sensitive receptors	the nearest dwelling (20 OXFORD ROAD LAVERTON NORTH VIC 3026) about 221m away	Noise modelling Acoustic enclosures / silencers Setback and siting	Moderate

Required checks

• Environmental noise assessment / modelling against the state noise policy
• Select low-noise equipment and acoustic treatments as required

3

Traffic & Access

Survey required Minor

Traffic was screened on project type rather than site-specific counts. Utility-scale energy projects generate concentrated heavy-vehicle traffic during construction and deliver major components as OSOM loads. A Traffic Impact Assessment and OSOM route assessment are required at the development application stage; operational traffic for a generation / storage site is low.

Legislation: State road / planning authority traffic impact and OSOM permit requirements

Aspect	Risk	Mitigation	Rating
Construction traffic	Heavy-vehicle movements on the local road network during construction	Construction Traffic Management Plan Confirm pavement capacity, access and intersection sight distance with the road authority	Minor
OSOM deliveries	Over-size / over-mass plant deliveries require route assessment and permits	OSOM route assessment and permits Upgrade site access / turning geometry if required	Minor
Operational traffic	Low ongoing traffic (staff / maintenance)	Standard access management	Insignificant

Required checks

• Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA) covering construction and operation
• OSOM route assessment and permits for major plant deliveries
• Construction Traffic Management Plan agreed with the road authority

4

Hazard & Risk (fire / explosion)

Minor

The principal on-site hazard is bulk diesel storage for standby generation, a dangerous good under AS 1940 storage and handling requirements. Quantities are typically below Major Hazard Facility thresholds but must be confirmed; any UPS battery rooms are subject to their own fire-safety standards.

Legislation: Dangerous goods (storage and handling) legislation (state); AS 1940:2017 (the storage and handling of flammable and combustible liquids)

Aspect	Risk	Mitigation	Rating
Bulk diesel storage / standby generation	the nearest dwelling (20 OXFORD ROAD LAVERTON NORTH VIC 3026) about 221m away; diesel quantities must be confirmed against dangerous-goods manifest and notification thresholds	AS 1940 storage design Dangerous-goods notification Separation to receptors and boundaries	Minor

Required checks

• Confirm diesel storage quantities against dangerous-goods manifest and notification thresholds
• Fuel storage design to AS 1940 (bunding, separation, fire protection)
• Fire safety study covering generator halls, fuel storage and any UPS battery rooms

The rest of the screen

Ratings use the four-level scale in Appendix A. Constraints marked Survey required have NOT been assessed as low risk; the phased action plan sequences their checks.

The Consent Pathway, and What Has Been Approved

The approvals a project of this type would typically require, and recent comparable projects approved on a similar pathway.

Comparable approved projects

Precedents de-risk the approval thesis; they are indicative only and each application turns on its own merits.

Recommended Action Plan

The phased sequence from this memo to a lodged development application.

No fatal flaws identified

Power and cluster read well: HV transmission adjoins the site (66 kV); Altona Terminal Station at 220 kV about 2,480 m; 10 data centre(s) within 8 km. The planning pathway is open: zoned IN2Z, no fatal flaws across the 19 of 19 constraints screened, with 4 Moderate issues to manage through the development application.

Every line above stands on a number earlier in this memo; none of it replaces the specialist assessments in the action plan.

Planning screen detail: No Major red flags across the 19 assessable constraint(s). 4 Moderate constraint(s) require mitigation through the development application.

Indicative screening fee: A$1000 per site.

Method, Data & Rating Scale

This is a desktop red flags screen. The drawn site boundary was intersected against national and state planning, hazard and environmental spatial layers, supplemented by state planning services and an SRTM elevation model. Each constraint is rated on the four-level scale, and where data is unavailable for the state it is flagged for survey rather than assumed clear.

Risk rating scale

Each constraint is rated on a four-level scale. Constraints that could not be assessed from available data are shown separately and are not treated as low risk.

Indicative Scope of Work & Fees

Indicative scope and fees to take this site from screening to a lodged development application. The site screen is a fixed fee; later phases are scoped against the red flags identified above and are a small fraction of the cost of progressing an unscreened site to formal feasibility.

Fees are indicative ranges excluding GST and vary with site complexity and the assessments triggered.