UK Greenlights Initial Phase of £10 Billion QTS Data Center Campus in Northumberland
December 8, 2025
In a significant move for the UK's digital infrastructure, planning authorities have approved the first construction phase of a massive £10 billion ($13 billion) data center campus in Northumberland, England. The decision underscores the intense demand for high-capacity computing facilities, particularly to support the growth of artificial intelligence and cloud services across Europe.
The Northumberland County Council granted approval on December 2 for the initial development at the QTS-owned site in Cambois. This first phase will see the construction of two data center buildings, marking the start of a project that could eventually comprise up to ten facilities on the 540,000 square meter (5.8 million square foot) campus. The site, located at the former Blyth Power Station, was previously earmarked for a battery factory before those plans were canceled.
The full campus is designed for a total power capacity of 720MW. The project also includes plans for two "freedom parks," described as public spaces honoring themes of liberty and local history. The development is strategically positioned within an "AI Growth Zone," a status granted to the area around Blyth and Cobalt Park in September 2025, which is intended to provide faster access to power and streamlined planning processes for tech investments.
The approval represents a major step in the European expansion of QTS Realty Trust, a US-based data center provider owned by investment giant Blackstone. Beyond the UK, QTS is actively broadening its footprint on the continent with a planned 100-hectare facility in Finland and existing operations in the Netherlands and Spain. The scale of the Northumberland investment highlights the competitive race to build next-generation data center capacity in regions offering available power, land, and supportive regulatory frameworks.
Source: datacenterdynamics
UK Greenlights Initial Phase of £10 Billion QTS Data Center Campus in Northumberland
