AI infrastructure company Nebius Group has announced plans to build a large-scale data center in Finland valued at more than $10 billion, marking a significant expansion of its operations in Europe. The facility, located in Lappeenranta, will have a capacity of 310 megawatts, making it one of the largest AI-focused data centers in the region.
The project is being developed in partnership with Finnish firm Polarnode and is expected to begin operations in phases starting in 2027. Designed to support the training of artificial intelligence models and the deployment of AI applications, the data center will not be tied to a single client, allowing Nebius to serve a broad range of customers including enterprises, AI-native companies, and research institutions.
The investment reflects the rapid rise in demand for AI computing infrastructure, as companies worldwide race to secure capacity for data-intensive workloads. Nebius has already secured major contracts worth more than $40 billion with companies such as Microsoft and Meta, underscoring the scale of demand driving its expansion strategy.
Finland was chosen as the site for the project due to its favorable conditions for data center operations, including low energy costs, access to renewable power, and a cold climate that helps reduce cooling expenses. These advantages are increasingly important as companies look to optimize the efficiency and sustainability of large-scale AI infrastructure.
The new facility will be Nebius’ largest site outside the United States and is expected to contribute significantly to the company’s broader goal of scaling its global capacity. Once operational, the data center is projected to account for a substantial share of its total planned infrastructure, reinforcing Nebius’ position in the competitive AI cloud market.
The development highlights a broader industry shift toward building dedicated AI infrastructure, as traditional cloud systems struggle to keep up with the growing computational demands of next-generation technologies. With projects of this scale, companies like Nebius are playing a key role in shaping the future of global AI deployment and digital infrastructure.
