US firms confirm billions in UK data centre investment

Two prominent US entities have confirmed substantial investments into the UK’s data centre infrastructure, creating a significant pipeline for the construction sector, particularly in advanced digital facilities. Microsoft has pledged $30bn (£23.5bn) over three years, with approximately $15bn earmarked for capital works. This includes the construction of new hyperscale data centres and the development of the UK's largest supercomputer, integrating over 23,000 NVIDIA GPUs, in partnership with Nscale. While specific locations, construction timelines, and procurement routes are yet to be disclosed, this constitutes a major future tender opportunity for specialist contractors and their supply chains. Separately, BlackRock plans to invest up to £500m, with an initial £100m, through its Europe Property Fund VI via a new joint venture, Digital Gravity Partners. This strategy centres on acquiring and upgrading underutilised existing mid-sized enterprise data centres, rather than greenfield developments. This approach presents substantial opportunities in brownfield redevelopment, retrofitting, and critical power infrastructure upgrades. Both investments, announced during a US state visit, underscore confidence in the UK’s economic stability and its reformed planning and electricity grid policies, vital for enabling the expansion required to support burgeoning AI adoption across key UK clients. Read More