Demand for information middle capability throughout Europe is rising at a report tempo, pushed by AI adoption, digital transformation, and the accelerating shift to cloud and edge computing, a report commissioned by the European Knowledge Centre Affiliation (EUDCA) finds.
In 2023, colocation information facilities alone contributed €30 billion ($32 billion) to European GDP, and this determine is projected to succeed in €83.8 billion ($90.7 billion) by 2030, in line with the affiliation’s latest State of European Data Centers in 2025 report.
Whereas the FLAPD markets – Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris, and Dublin – stay dominant in put in energy, rising areas just like the Nordics, Southern Europe, and Central and Jap Europe are rapidly catching up, supported by renewable vitality investments and improved digital infrastructure.
Nevertheless, speedy development comes with important challenges, particularly by way of vitality availability, workforce growth, and regulatory cohesion.
The EUDCA’s State of European Knowledge Facilities 2025 report explores financial affect, information sovereignty, and sustainability challenges. Picture: EUDCA
The EUDCA’s State of European Knowledge Facilities 2025 report explores financial affect, information sovereignty, and sustainability challenges. Picture: EUDCA
In response to the Worldwide Vitality Company (IEA), world electrical energy demand is projected to develop by practically 4% yearly by way of 2027, pushed by sectors together with information facilities.
In Eire, information facilities are projected to account for 32% of the nation’s whole electrical energy consumption by 2026, up from 17% in 2022, reflecting the speedy growth of knowledge middle infrastructure within the area.
“FLAPD is reaching saturation level,” Michael Winterson, secretary common at EUDCA, tells DCN. “You possibly can’t get vitality entry, and the court docket of public opinion is sort of damaging on additional information middle growth in these markets.”
That strain is shifting funding towards international locations like Portugal, Spain, and Poland, the place grid entry and native authorities help are drawing hyperscale and colocation gamers alike.
From Winterson’s perspective, energy availability has emerged as one of many defining constraints.
“The primary problem proper now could be: do you have got entry to the grid?” he says. “In case you don’t, you may’t construct the info middle.”
The EUDCA govt stated that though the sector has the capital to put money into renewable vitality and energy buy agreements, regulatory hurdles typically block grid entry.
“We’re participating policymakers on the European and native ranges,” he explains. “We’re telling them, ‘We can be sustainable. We’ll solely purchase renewable vitality. Assist us get that entry.’”
Pricing is one other complication. Based mostly on marginal value bidding, Europe’s vitality pricing mannequin can lead to unstable electrical energy costs.
“The system is archaic,” Winterson says. “Even when a photo voltaic farm produces free vitality, if a gas-fired plant is the final bidder wanted to fulfill demand, that turns into the market value.”
Hyperscale operators like Google are leveraging FLAP-D markets like Dublin for growth. Picture: Alamy
Hyperscale operators like Google are leveraging FLAP-D markets like Dublin for growth. Picture: Alamy
EU Knowledge Middle Expertise Scarcity
The EUDCA’s newest trade report outlines a big expertise scarcity, with specialised technical labor in brief provide throughout the EU’s information middle house.
Winterson says that to deal with this, many operators are implementing coaching and apprenticeship packages in partnership with native governments and technical colleges.
Nevertheless, he emphasizes the necessity for a broader strategy.
“What we have to do subsequent is take the very best practices from round Europe and scale them,” he advised DCN.
Winterson is evident on the query of digital sovereignty: Europe’s alternative lies in constructing a unified digital market.
“In Europe, the info belongs to the one who creates it,” he says. “That’s essentially completely different from the U.S., the place information belongs to the platform, or China, the place it belongs to the state.”
He argues that by aligning round GDPR and enabling safe information motion throughout borders, Europe may construct a digital system to rival world giants.
“Europe has probably the most wonderful public datasets on the earth,” Winterson says. “We have to act prefer it.”
Rising Pains
In response to an August 2024 report from Synergy Analysis Group, of the highest 20 markets for hyperscale information facilities, 13 are within the U.S., 4 are within the APAC area, and simply three are in Europe.
Within the colocation information middle market, Europe first enters the list in third place because of London, U.Okay., adopted by Frankfurt, Germany, which positioned seventh. Markets in Paris and Amsterdam had been featured outdoors the highest 10.
When it comes to information facilities, hyperscale “own-build” information facilities from Meta, Google, AWS, and Microsoft are completely different from massive information facilities operated by colocation corporations, together with Equinix, Digital Realty, and NTT.
John Dinsdale, chief analyst and analysis director at Synergy Analysis Group, stated the drivers and advantages by way of location are completely different for each fashions.
“Colocation information facilities will at all times have a tendency in direction of being close to massive concentrations of financial exercise,” he defined. “In Europe, meaning London, Frankfurt, Paris and Amsterdam are the preferred places.”
For hyperscale operators constructing their very own information facilities, proximity to finish customers isn’t such an enormous deal so they are going to be extra influenced by issues like value of actual property, value and availability of energy, ease of doing enterprise, native laws, and entry to community infrastructure.
“For hyperscale operations, Eire has thus far been the popular location, adopted at a distance by the Netherlands and Germany,” Dinsdale says.
When seeking to the long run, he singles out Spain and Sweden as two international locations experiencing a lot exercise and growing in significance.
Meta Odense Knowledge Middle in Odense, Denmark. Picture: Alamy
Meta Odense Knowledge Middle in Odense, Denmark. Picture: Alamy
Strategic Engagement Wanted
Winterson says the EU should shift from reactive policymaking to extra strategic engagement with the info middle trade.
“We’ve received to cease simply ready and responding to consultations that are available as a result of a few of these consultations are irrelevant,” he says.
As an alternative, Winterson argues that the EU ought to deal with structural challenges like vitality entry and regulatory complexity.
“We have to begin addressing the basic points,” he explains, noting that the EUDCA just lately printed a manifesto outlining its prime coverage priorities. “Precedence primary [is to] repair the vitality downside,” he says. “There are issues that may be accomplished on this present administration to repair a few of these vitality issues.”
Learn extra of the newest information middle regulation information
Winterson questioned previous efforts that missed the larger image, pointing to years-long coverage roadmaps with marginal advantages.
“Dangerous laws, failing to execute the laws appropriately, or failing to get the massive image is the basic problem,” he says.
With out cohesive, cross-sector motion, the EU dangers undermining its personal digital ambitions, he cautions.
