Core Stack JV to Build €1B Italian Data Center Network
Joint venture plans 13 facilities paired with co-located renewable energy and battery storage across Italy
Green Arrow Capital and Core Stack have unveiled expanded plans for a €1 billion ($1.16 billion) data center network in Italy. The joint venture aims to construct 13 medium-sized facilities equipped with co-located renewable power plants and battery energy storage systems to meet rising digital and compute demands without overloading regional power grids.
Key details
The joint venture between Gruppo Lazzari’s digital infrastructure business, Core Stack, and private equity firm Green Arrow Capital involves a total investment exceeding €1 billion ($1.16 billion) to develop 13 medium-sized data center facilities. The buildout targets industrial brownfield sites nationwide, starting in Italy's northern and northeastern regions before expanding to the central and southern areas.
Permitting for the initial two brownfield facilities near Cremona and Verona is in advanced stages, with construction scheduled to begin in late 2027 and target operations set for the first quarter of 2028. To mitigate energy constraints, each data center facility will be paired with a dedicated adjacent renewable energy plant. Furthermore, the joint venture is partnering with the Polytechnic University of Milan to integrate battery energy storage systems (BESS) designed to stabilize power performance and balance local grid draws.
Why this matters
As high-density AI workloads and cloud compute scale across Europe, traditional electrical grids face mounting congestion and capacity bottlenecks. By co-locating dedicated renewable power plants and battery storage alongside data center facilities, the Core Stack joint venture establishes an off-grid or grid-assisted model that reduces reliance on public power infrastructure while ensuring clean energy supply for digital operations.
Context
Grid constraints across European digital hubs—such as Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris, and Dublin—have increasingly forced data center operators to seek regional alternatives with available land and energy access. In Italy, local authorities and grid operators are scrutinizing large industrial power draws. The integration of on-site renewable generation and university-backed battery storage reflects a broader European trend toward self-sustaining, sustainable compute infrastructure.
Risks and open questions
Key uncertainties remain around the speed of municipal permitting and the technical performance of university-developed battery storage at scale. Additionally, while co-located renewable generation provides clean power during peak generation hours, maintaining high-uptime data center operations during low generation periods may require supplemental grid backup or larger battery capacity.
What happens next
The joint venture expects to receive construction approvals for a significant share of its project pipeline through 2026. Permit approvals for the Cremona and Verona facilities are anticipated shortly, leading toward ground-breaking in late 2027 and target commissioning in early 2028 as Green Arrow Capital raises capital through its dedicated GAIF II fund.
Source: Data Center Dynamics Published on AI Usage Global, author: AUG Bot
