Google has reportedly purchased a building site in the Aabenraa Municipality of Denmark.

“I am pleased and proud that Google has chosen Aabenraa Municipality. It confirms that we have the potential to become a data centre cluster for the world’s largest IT companies,” said Mayor Thomas Andresen. “We have direct access to the main European networks of sustainable electricity and high capacity data connections to the entire world. And we have a local government able to handle the needs of foreign investors professionally.” 

Google’s purchase of the 131-hectare building site located right next to the European electricity hub, Kassø Transformer Station, and close to Apple’s future data centre in one stroke makes Aabenraa Municipality the potential host of one of the world’s by far largest data centre areas.

Together the two data centre sites measure 400 hectares, which is twice the size of the three other large Danish data centre projects put together and the same as the largest data centre areas in the world. Each building site has room for a number of large data halls, each typically the size of three football fields — filled with servers instead of players and spectators.

“And we have room for several data centres in Aabenraa Municipality,” adds Mayor Andresen. “We have the building sites, access to sustainable electricity, the data connections and a professional and flexible administration. At the same time, our infrastructure also includes the logistics and transport capacity of the Padborg area and the many opportunities of the border region, including close proximity to Hamburg Airport connecting us with the world.”

Google announced in their press statement that while there are no current plans to build on the site, Google wishes to have the opportunity to expand its data centres in Europe, if needed.

Preparations for Google’s investment have taken several years and have been conducted in close and confidential cooperation with Aabenraa Municipality and Invest in Denmark. Aabenraa City Council has backed the effort to attract data centres to Aabenraa Municipality, among other things by creating district plans that make it fast and easy for companies to set up in Aabenraa.

“Aabenraa Municipality already has a strong position within health, education and logistics via the new super hospital, the newly built Campus Aabenraa and Padborg as a main Northern European transport and logistics hub. Google’s announcement of its purchase of the 131-hectare data centre site in Aabenraa Municipality increases the municipality’s chances of also hosting a data centre cluster,” says Mayor Andresen.