The Scottish Conservatives are facing demands to explain donations from individuals connected to major data centre developments after an investigation uncovered financial links between Conservative donors and two controversial projects in southern Scotland.

Scottish Greens MSP Laura Moodie has called for full transparency over the money received, including whether any conditions or expectations were attached to donations from people with financial interests in the developments.

The questions follow an investigation by The Ferret which identified Conservative Party treasurer Graham Edwards as the ultimate controlling party behind CX Tech, the company proposing a £16.5 billion data centre at Chapelcross in Dumfries and Galloway.

According to the investigation, Edwards controls the business through a chain of companies which includes a holding company registered in the British Virgin Islands.

Edwards has donated more than £6 million to the Conservatives since 2018 and became the party’s treasurer in 2022.

The investigation also identified connections involving another major data centre proposal near Duns in the Scottish Borders.

Dermot Jenkinson, a director and controller of the company behind the proposed Southside data centre on land owned by the Roxburghe Estate, has donated £10,000 to the Scottish Borders Conservatives since 2015.

That includes £3,000 donated in April 2026, shortly before the Scottish Parliament election.

The revelations have prompted renewed scrutiny of the Scottish Conservatives’ opposition to a proposed moratorium on new hyperscale data centre developments.

Last month, Conservative MSPs opposed the Scottish Greens’ attempt to pause decisions on major applications while national planning guidance and environmental safeguards were developed.

The Conservatives argued that restricting developments could discourage investment, while also acknowledging concerns about their environmental impact.

The Greens maintain that the rapid expansion of hyperscale facilities requires stronger scrutiny of electricity consumption, water supplies, land use and potential consequences for surrounding communities.

At Chapelcross, the proposed development could consume electricity equivalent to the annual needs of more than two million homes if operating at full capacity.

Scottish Greens South Scotland MSP Laura Moodie said:

“The Scottish Conservatives need to come clean about the money they have received from people with direct financial interests in Scotland’s biggest and most controversial data centre proposals.

“Only weeks ago, the Tories refused to support our party’s call for a moratorium on new hyperscale data centres, falsely claiming it would deter investment from Scotland.

“We now know that people connected to these developments have also been donating significant sums of money to the Conservatives.

“Perhaps the only investment they were really worried about deterring was investment in their own party coffers.

“At Chapelcross, communities are facing a development on a scale Scotland has never seen before.

“At full capacity, the data centre could consume more electricity annually than 2 million homes.

“People living near these developments deserve political parties working in their interests, not those of wealthy donors and developers.

“The Scottish Greens have been clear from the start that these massive developments must not go ahead without proper consideration of their cumulative impact on Scotland’s energy system, land, water and climate targets, and clear national rules to ensure they are genuinely green.

“The Scottish Conservatives must come clean about these donations and show that wealthy developers are not being given a louder voice than local communities.”

The financial connections identified by The Ferret do not establish that political donations influenced the Conservatives’ position on data centre planning.

Representatives of Edwards said his political activities were entirely separate from CX Tech and had played no part in the Chapelcross application.

CX Tech also denied receiving preferential political treatment, while representatives of the Southside development said Jenkinson’s donations were personal and unrelated to the company.

Developers argue that the projects could attract billions of pounds in investment and create employment opportunities in communities seeking economic growth.

The competing arguments leave important questions about how Scotland balances economic development, environmental protection and confidence in political decision making.

For the Greens, the immediate demand is for greater disclosure about donations and any associated expectations.

For the Conservatives, the challenge is to demonstrate that their position on major data centre developments is determined by policy considerations rather than the financial interests of individual supporters.