UK Data Center Operator Stellanor Names Gary Watson as Managing Director
May 18, 2026
UK Data Center Operator Stellanor Names Gary Watson as Managing Director
UK-based data center firm Stellanor Datacenters has appointed Gary Watson as managing director, marking a leadership transition aimed at accelerating the company’s aggressive expansion strategy across the UK market. Watson, who joined the company as chief operating officer in February, brings more than a decade of senior-level experience in the data center and telecommunications sectors.
Watson previously spent 10 years at Keppel Data Centres, where he served as country manager for Ireland, and held prior roles at Sungard AS, Hosting 365, Telecity, and Cable & Wireless. His appointment comes at a pivotal moment for Stellanor, which has rapidly scaled its portfolio from two to eleven facilities in just nine months, backed by infrastructure funds managed by DWS Group.
Michael Tobin CBE, chairman of the board at Stellanor, said: “With Gary now leading our team, we have the experience and leadership in place to execute at pace while continuing to provide the operational standards our customers rely on. We’ve scaled from two to eleven facilities in nine months, backed by the infrastructure funds managed by DWS Group, and we are firmly positioned to support growing demand for enterprise colocation and AI-ready infrastructure.”
Stellanor was launched last year by German investment firm DWS, a major asset manager with roots dating back to 1956 and formerly known as Deutsche Asset Management. The company was initially seeded with two UK data centers in London, acquired from Colt Technology Services, which had obtained the sites after purchasing Lumen’s EMEA operations in November 2022. Stellanor later expanded by acquiring the data center portfolio of UK managed services provider Redcentric, a deal that added eight facilities totaling 41MW across locations including London, Woking, Gatwick, Byfleet, Reading, Cambridge, and Elland in West Yorkshire. That transaction recently closed. The company is also in the process of acquiring a facility outside London from semiconductor firm Imagination.
Incoming managing director Watson said: “This is an exciting point in Stellanor’s journey. We have a strong portfolio, a clear strategy, and an exceptional team. Our focus now is on integration, ensuring the highest standards across the platform and continuing to deliver operational excellence for our customers. At the same time, we are investing in the platform and building the next phase of growth.”
The appointment underscores Stellanor’s ambition to capture a larger share of the UK’s growing demand for enterprise colocation and AI-ready infrastructure. DWS has also invested in Mediterra, a data center firm focused on southern Europe that launched last year, and recently sold European operator NorthC to Antin Infrastructure Partners, signaling a broader push into the data center space across the continent.
Source: datacenterdynamics
