Aker Nscale to Develop 96MW AI-Ready Data Center in Skien, Norway
January 30, 2026
Norwegian data center developer Aker Nscale has announced plans to build a major new facility in Skien, Norway, as demand for high-capacity computing infrastructure, particularly for artificial intelligence workloads, continues to surge across the Nordics. The region's abundant renewable energy resources and favorable climate have made it a prime destination for large-scale digital infrastructure projects.
The company has entered into an agreement with local energy firm Løvenskiold-Fossum Kraft Drift to develop the 96-megawatt (MW) data center. Aker Nscale has applied for the necessary grid capacity from Norway's national grid operator, Statnett, signaling the project's advanced planning stage. While specific details regarding the facility's exact location and timeline remain undisclosed, the partnership underscores a strategic move to leverage local assets.
Leopold Løvenskiold, general manager and owner of Løvenskiold-Fossum, emphasized the project's regional significance, stating, "We believe the data center will attract new, attractive labor and be an important contributor to immigration and value creation in the region. This is a new milestone in the industrial development of Løvenskiold-Fossum." His firm manages a substantial 330,000-acre forest property and operates several small power plants through its energy division.
This project marks Aker Nscale's latest expansion in Norway, following its formation as a joint venture between neocloud Nscale and investment firm Aker in October 2025. The JV is actively developing a portfolio of large-scale sites, including a planned 250MW facility in Narvik and a 230MW data center in Kvandal. In a related move last November, the company purchased land in Fauske, Norway, for future development.
The development in Skien places Aker Nscale in a municipality that is rapidly becoming a data center hub. Tech giant Google is also constructing a 240MW campus in Skien, having broken ground in February 2024 on a 200-hectare site also formerly owned by Leopold Løvenskiold, which was sold for approximately $18 million. Located about 134 kilometers southwest of Oslo, Skien's appeal is bolstered by its connectivity and access to sustainable power.
For the broader industry, Aker Nscale's continued investment highlights the intense competition for viable sites and power contracts in the Nordics. The focus on AI-ready infrastructure indicates a strategic pivot to cater to the next wave of compute-intensive applications, further solidifying Scandinavia's role as a critical node in the global data center landscape.
Source: datacenterdynamics
