Dissecting Spain’s bullish data centre boom

An active M&A scene, growing renewable energy investments, subsea cables and an ever-digitising economy, this is once again one of Southern Europe’s biggest hosting bets. 

If Spain’s data centre market was divided into historical eras, it would now be going through its revivalism age. One of Europe's largest and most populous nations at 505,990 sq Km and 47.4 million citizens, Spain – and Iberia as a whole – is Southern Europe’s next big thing when it comes to data centre investment opportunities, connecting the continent further into Africa and SouthAmerica.

The main data centre market is undoubtedly the capital of Madrid, once a Tier 1 destination for operators in the days of the telecoms. A reference the city would gradually climb down giving space to other metros such as Dublin, Amsterdam, or Frankfurt.

Beyond the capital, Barcelona and Valencia are the top two secondary markets, with the Catalonian capital the largest of the pair. Barcelona, in particular, has grown to serve an active SME business base and provide data replication for facilities in Madrid.

And because “no hay dos sin tres” (literally “there is no two without three”), regional markets, especially in Seville and Bilbao, are also beginning to attract interest from operators and investors. 

But what’s bringing Spain back into the limelight of Europe’s data centre boom?

I've put some thoughts to paper here covering not only the current data centre landscape across the country but the inward investments coming in from several fronts - including in the renewable energy space, paramount to the thriving of European hubs.

Read more by clicking the link below.