Google is set to invest an additional 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) to expand its data center campus in Hamina, Finland, a move aimed at boosting its artificial intelligence (AI) business growth across Europe. The Hamina facility is one of Google’s most advanced and efficient data centers and Finland’s largest foreign greenfield investment to date.
The expansion is expected to generate approximately 1,900 direct jobs, 1,650 indirect jobs, and 640 induced construction jobs annually over the next two years. Currently, the campus employs around 400 individuals, including computer technicians, engineers, security personnel, and facilities management staff. The expansion will add another 100 full-time positions, significantly benefiting the local economy.
Since 2009, Google has invested €3.5 billion in its Hamina data center and associated infrastructure. The latest investment includes a strategic collaboration with Haminan Energia, the local district heating provider, to capture and repurpose heat generated by the data center for district heating purposes.
Google has also announced a new partnership with the municipality of Hamina and Haminan Energia to harness data center heat for the local district heating network. This initiative will supply an estimated 80% of Hamina’s district heating needs, providing warmth to households, schools, and public service buildings in a region heavily reliant on fossil fuels. The project is anticipated to start contributing to Hamina’s energy balance with low carbon emissions by late 2025. Google will offer the recovered heat to Haminan Energia at zero cost, integrating it into the district heating network in Hamina city.
Data center growth in the Nordic region
According to ResearchAndMarkets.com, the Nordic data center construction market reached a value of USD 1.68 billion in 2022 and is projected to hit USD 2.57 billion by 2028, marking a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.33%.
One key reason for the preference of the Nordics for data center development is the cold climate, which enables operators to substantially reduce cooling costs and improve energy efficiency. Moreover, many governments in the Nordic region are rolling out AI strategies, leading to increased data generation and driving the demand for data center infrastructure.
Denmark emerged as the leading investor among Nordic countries in 2022, with investments exceeding USD 500 million. Sweden and Norway followed closely behind Denmark in terms of significant investments during the same period.
Furthermore, there has been a notable surge in the establishment of cloud regions by major hyperscale data center operators like Google, Microsoft, AWS, Oracle, and Meta, further fueling growth in the industry in the Nordic region.
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