I recently had the pleasure of speaking at Capacity Europe as part of "The Emerging Data Centre Hubs of Europe" panel. My fellow panelists and I took the opportunity to dive into a topic that’s becoming increasingly relevant in today’s data-driven world – how alternative markets are emerging as significant players in the European data center landscape.
When we think about data centers in Europe, the FLAP-D markets – Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris, and Dublin – have long been at the forefront of the industry. However, they are hitting a ceiling when it comes to grid capacity and are being held back by regulatory constraints. For example, Amsterdam and Dublin have imposed restrictions on further growth to balance energy use with environmental concerns, making it harder for data centers to scale in these cities. As a result, operators are being forced to urgently seek new alternatives.
Many operators are looking at cities like Barcelona, Milan, Warsaw, Helsinki, and Oslo for their future projects. AI companies need rapid deployment and scalability, and emerging hubs are uniquely positioned to offer both. In the Nordics, specifically, we are seeing the capital cities become prime destinations for new data center developments.
One reason for this is the ample availability of renewable energy sources. Green energy availability isn't just important—it’s becoming a non-negotiable factor for AI-driven companies looking for scalability. The Nordics offer an attractive combination of renewable power and large, scalable sites.
Additionally, many AI and HPC workloads, which are driving much of the new demand, do not require the low-latency proximity to major metropolitan centers that used to be necessary. Advancements in network infrastructure mean these workloads can now thrive in more remote locations with abundant energy and land, like the Nordics.
Hyperscale demand is another driver that’s reshaping the market. It wasn’t long ago that a 10 MW data center project was seen as a large-scale development, often taking years to complete. But now, we’re seeing AI companies and cloud providers requesting that same 10 MW and they want it up and running within just a few months. The speed and scale at which they need to operate are pushing them to consider locations that can provide both the power and the space to accommodate such rapid growth.
In Helsinki, where I’ve seen this development firsthand, growth is no longer just strong—it’s exploding. During the panel, I talked about how any piece of land with access to power is being snapped up almost immediately. But it’s not just about power. Companies are also looking for locations where they can easily access skilled talent, major suppliers like Dell and Cisco, and robust connectivity. Helsinki ticks all those boxes, which is why we the Finnish market has an expected compound annual growth rate of 29% over the next five years.
For me, the takeaway from the panel was clear: while FLAP-D markets will always be important, they’re facing limitations that can’t be ignored. The Nordics, and Helsinki in particular, are more than just an alternative. They are becoming the preferred future destination for AI and high-performance computing. The energy availability, scalability, and talent accessibility found in these hubs are ideally suited to meet the growing demand for large-scale, sustainable, and rapidly deployable digital infrastructure.