Compass Datacenters and Hines, the global real estate firm, have acquired land in the Milan metro area with the intention to build one of the largest data centre campuses in Italy.
The 2.3 million ft2 (215,000 m2) Noviglio-located site aims to support 48MW+ of IT load with construction to begin in 2023.
The joint venture marks the European debut of global data centre developer Compass Datacenters, and is anticipated to be the first data centre project to be delivered by Hines in Europe.
AJ Byers, president and chief development officer at Compass Datacenters said: 'Building our first European campus in Milan is a major step in Compass’ global expansion strategy.
'Its geographic location, undersea cable connectivity, robust fiber availability and affordable power makes it an ideal location for hyperscalers. Hines’ vision for Italy aligns with our own, and our combined resources should accelerate the timeline for customer availability.'
Mario Abbadessa, senior managing director and country head, Italy, at Hines, commented: 'This first investment into the Italian and European data centre market establishes a new area of development for Hines, representing significant opportunities in a high-growth sector.
'The Italian data centre market is becoming a leading destination for cloud providers with growing capacity requirements commonly referred to as hyperscalers, with $2.6 bn (€2.55 bn) projected to be invested by 2026.
'Milan’s high level of network connectivity and the region’s multiple submarine cable termination points were key elements in both companies’ mutual identification of the Noviglio site as an ideal data centre campus location in Milan’s supply-constrained market.'
Added Byers: 'Sustainability is a hallmark of the approach that Compass and Hines use. Our sustainable construction methodologies include the use of materials produced using GHG reduction technology, the use of renewable fuel generators, and low-waste construction methodologies.
'When customers work with us, they have the assurance that their digital infrastructure will exceed regulatory requirements while also supporting corporate sustainability strategies.'
'Compass and Hines’ sustainable approach to design and construction aligns with the EU’s goals on carbon reduction and is consistent with our customer’s green strategies in Europe,' said Abbadessa. 'Both companies view green construction as a core tenet while also attempting to reduce the customer’s total cost of ownership.'
