French Municipalities Seek Operator for Massive 1.4GW Hyperscale Data Center Campus
December 18, 2025
A major development opportunity for a hyperscale data center campus, with a potential power capacity of up to 1.4 gigawatts (GW), has been launched in northern France. The project underscores the intense competition among European regions to attract capital-intensive digital infrastructure, particularly to support the booming demand from cloud computing and artificial intelligence.
The Somme Sud-Ouest Community of Municipalities (CC2SO), a grouping of local authorities in northwestern France, has issued a call for expressions of interest to find an operator for a large-scale digital and industrial campus. The proposed site is located at the Bosquel Business Park, situated strategically between Paris and Lille near the A16 motorway.
The available land parcel spans 33 hectares, with an option for a further 17 hectares of expansion. In terms of critical power infrastructure, French grid operator RTE has designated the site for a fast-track connection, with an initial 240 megawatts (MW) of capacity expected within two years. This is slated to increase to 1GW within four years, with the long-term potential to reach the full 1.4GW.
“These conditions make Bosquel a particularly attractive location for cloud computing, hyperscale data centers, high-performance computing, and AI companies,” stated CC2SO. The organization added that “The availability of exceptional electrical power, combined with a large land reserve, positions the area as a site suitable for hosting strategic investments with a high impact on the national economy.”
Interested parties have until January 16 to submit their expressions of interest.
This initiative is part of a broader wave of large-scale data center projects in France, fueled by national ambitions in AI and digital sovereignty. Other significant developments in the region include a separate project by operator Data4 for a campus of up to 1GW in Cambrai and Prologis's plans for data center sites in Le Havre. The search for an operator for the Bosquel site highlights the critical challenge of securing both ample land and massive, timely power allocations, which are becoming key differentiators in the European data center market.
Source: datacenterdynamics
