The Bucharest – Ilfov area becomes a regional hub for data centers – Biz Magazine

Romania could triple or even increase its data center capacity by seven to eight times in the next three years after several investors announced the construction of new projects in Bucharest in recent months, he said Mihai Manole, General Director of Tema Energy.

Last year, several relevant players announced their intentions and started projects to run large data centers. Bucharest is the chosen location mainly due to the easy access to the communication highways, electricity networks, but also to qualified personnel.

Concentration in Bucharest

In fact, eight of the ten most relevant data centers in Romania are located in Bucharest.

“Area Bucharest – Ilfov has a real chance to become a regional hub for data centers, thanks to the conditions it offers to international investors. The availability of high-speed communications, the ability to supply energy, the still low price of electricity and qualified human resources are just some of the advantages. In recent months, several relevant international investors have announced projects in Bucharest and surroundings, which totals over 100 MW of electrical power. If we consider that the execution of a large data center takes about two to three years on average, in 2027 we could witness an accelerated growth of three to seven to eight times the current capacity“, he states Michael ManoleGeneral Manager of Tema Energy and organizer of the DataCenter Forum.

The positioning of Romania on the European map

The capital of Romania is in ninth position in the top emerging markets at EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa) level, with data centers totaling 15 MW of electrical power, according to the 2023 report of real estate consultancy Knight Frank. However, the projects already under development can increase this capacity to 50-55 MW in a relatively short term.

Another similar report, published by Savills, places Bucharest on the 30th place in the list of the most recommended European cities for operating a data center.

The widespread adoption of Artificial Intelligence and cognitive power processes is generating an unprecedented demand for capacity in data centers. The phenomenon occurs both in mature markets in the West and in secondary or emerging markets, among which is Romania.

A market of over 2.3 billion euros

Thus, the secondary markets in Europe, which include for example Spain, Poland, but also Romania, will register an average increase of approximately 49%, while the central FLAPD area (Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris, Dublin) will not exceed 16%, according to the EMEA Data Center 2024 report published by real estate consultancy JLL.

At the same time, the report also highlights that in 2023 investments in the data center industry have doubled compared to the previous year, totaling 2.34 billion euros at the European level.