Business Forum • 15 April, 2025 at 12:55 PM
Bucharest is poised for a significant expansion in its data centre capacity, with projections indicating a rise from the current 20 MW to 50 MW within the next two years, according to Tema Energy, a company specializing in the design and development of data centres.
This growth is fueled by strong interest from European and American developers, who are attracted by Romania's favorable conditions for investments.
The local market is driven by factors such as affordable land, accessible energy resources, and robust fiber-optic connectivity. Against this backdrop, the company's business has seen substantial growth, with a 30% increase last year, reaching €20 million.
Mihai Manole, CEO of Tema Energy, said that the strong demand for cloud services and AI are key drivers for this expansion. He noted that Western Europe's high construction costs are pushing investors to consider CEE markets, where costs are significantly lower. In Romania, building a data centre costs at least 25% less than in Western Europe.
"At the level of Bucharest—which concentrates the largest investments—the market could grow from a capacity of about 20 MW today to 50 MW in the next two years," Manole stated. "We know with certainty that the data centres in Bucharest are close to full capacity, with an estimated occupancy rate of around 95%. Many players do not have the power capacity to meet the growing customer demand."
Bucharest's economic growth in recent years has led most investors and developers to prefer it over other capitals in the region, such as Budapest or Sofia, for the construction of new data centres, according to Tema Energy.