By Tiago Ramos Alfaro and Daniele Lepido | Updated on Oct 08, 2026 at 05:00 AM
Italy’s data center buildout could attract some €36.9 billion ($41.5 billion) of investment through 2036, as artificial intelligence and cloud computing fuel a rapid expansion of capacity, according to a study commissioned by an industry group.
Italy’s commercial data-center capacity is projected to rise about fivefold by 2031, to as much as 2.3 gigawatts, according to the study from the Italian Datacenter Association set to be released on Thursday. The estimate, based on projects already identified, compares with about 460 megawatts of capacity operating at the end of 2025.
The capex figure represents a one-time investment in facilities and covers construction and fit-out. It excludes servers, GPUs and other IT equipment, with the potential stock of hardware estimated at about €67 billion, according to the study, illustrating the scale of capital required to fully develop the identified Italian pipeline. The expansion is also contingent on access to power, suitable sites and permits.
Milan is at the center of Italy’s data-center expansion, accounting for more than 80% of the country’s operating commercial capacity, and the report expects it to develop into one of Europe’s biggest data-center markets over the next decade. Technology companies and investors across the continent are race to add computing capacity for AI and narrow a gap with the US.
Industry pipeline estimates don’t necessarily translate into completed investments. Data center projects in Italy face lengthy permitting, environmental reviews and some opposition from local communities concerned about their impact.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s cabinet has made data centers a priority of its technology and investment strategy. Her government has moved to streamline approvals, and designated two major data-center investment programs in Lombardy and Sardinia, worth a combined €6.8 billion.
Industry Minister Adolfo Urso said Italy approved seven international data center investments totaling €25 billion in the first six months of the year, all funded with private capital.
EQT AB-owned EdgeConneX, Digital Realty Trust Inc. and Data4 SAS are among companies building or planning data centers in the country.
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While Milan remains dominant, Rome is emerging as a second Italian data-center hub. Still, the country lags behind the largest markets in Europe, the so-called FLAP-D of Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris and Dublin.
The study was prepared by Grezya Data Center Consulting Group for IDA, an industry group representing data-center operators, developers and other companies active in Italy.