Belgium Deploys New National Tier-1 Supercomputer 'Sofia' at Sustainable Data Center
December 1, 2025
Belgium has significantly upgraded its national research infrastructure with the deployment of a new Tier-1 supercomputer, named Sofia, at the Green Energy Park in Zellik. This strategic move underscores the growing importance of high-performance computing (HPC) for scientific innovation and economic competitiveness, positioning Flanders to tackle complex challenges in fields from climate science to advanced materials.
The system, which was officially launched this week, is now operational at a Penta Infra-owned data center within the sustainable Green Energy Park campus. The Vrije Universiteit Brussels (VUB) led the development of Sofia and will manage the supercomputer for the next six years. As a Tier-1 system, Sofia is designed as a centralized, large-scale resource serving the entire Flanders region, a step above the smaller, university-hosted Tier-2 systems.
Sofia represents a core component of the Flemish Supercomputer Centre (VSC) project and will provide critical computational power to researchers across Flemish universities, applied science institutions, and enterprises. The project involved a public investment of €8.6 million (approximately $10 million). While specific hardware details and peak performance metrics remain undisclosed, Sofia succeeds the 3.3-petaflop 'Hortense' system previously hosted at Ghent University.
The supercomputer's home is a nine-story, 10,000-square-meter facility originally built by Nexus and acquired by European colocation firm Penta Infra in June 2024. The data center is noted for its sustainable design, featuring a 7.2MW IT load powered by a 12.5 MVA renewable energy feed. Its infrastructure includes a photovoltaic façade capable of generating up to 0.5MW, a rainwater recovery system for cooling, and a thermal smart grid for heat reuse.
Flemish Minister-President Matthias Diependael emphasized the project's significance, stating, "The impressive computing power of the Flemish supercomputer Sofia will provide a tremendous boost to researchers at our Flemish universities, knowledge institutions, and companies." He added that the investment "underlines our ambition to position Flanders as a pioneer in innovation and sustainable high-tech development," creating the conditions for local researchers to excel on a global stage.
The deployment of Sofia is expected to accelerate groundbreaking research across Belgium and enhance the region's appeal for high-tech investment. By colocating a major state-funded HPC asset within a facility prioritizing energy efficiency and circular economy principles, the project also sets a notable precedent for aligning computational advancement with environmental sustainability goals in the data center industry.
Source: datacenterdynamics
Belgium Deploys New National Tier-1 Supercomputer 'Sofia' at Sustainable Data Center
