Google expands AI footprint in Finland with record investment

Alphabet Inc.’s Google plans to invest at least €13 billion ($15.1 billion) in artificial intelligence infrastructure in Finland over the next two years, marking the company’s largest single investment in Europe, Bloomberg reports.

According to a company statement issued, the investment will include the construction of at least three new data centres and the expansion of Google’s existing facility in Hamina, in southeastern Finland.

Google said Finland’s relatively cold climate makes the country well suited for data centre operations by reducing cooling requirements. The heat generated by servers can also be recovered and used to heat homes.

The company highlighted Finland’s energy mix, noting that 96% of the country’s electricity comes from carbon-free sources, primarily nuclear and renewable energy. Google also pointed to the availability of fresh water and the use of closed-loop cooling systems at Finnish data centres, which help reduce water consumption.

“Google is proud to deepen our roots in Finland with the company’s largest single investment in Europe,” Chief Investment Officer Ruth Porat said in a statement.

The investment forms part of Alphabet’s broader efforts to expand its AI computing capacity as competition intensifies across the industry. In July, the company raised its full-year capital spending forecast to as much as $205 billion as it races with rivals to strengthen its position in artificial intelligence.

For Finland, the project represents a major economic boost as the country seeks to revive growth amid weak demand, the collapse of trade with neighboring Russia and fiscal tightening aimed at restoring public finances. The unemployment rate has exceeded 10%, the highest level in the European Union.

Google estimates that the project will support more than 37,000 jobs across Finland during the construction phase, including around 16,000 positions in construction. Once operational, the facilities are expected to support approximately 7,000 jobs, including employment among suppliers and local service providers.

The new data centres will be built in Kajaani, Muhos and Vaala in northern Finland. Google had previously acquired land in the region for potential data centre development. The sites were selected in part because of their access to existing electricity grid infrastructure and nearby carbon-free energy sources.

“These locations at strong grid points both help the whole electricity system and ensure cost-effective network development,” Asta Sihvonen-Punkka, chief executive of Finnish transmission system operator Fingrid Oyj, said in the statement.

Google said it is also strengthening the energy infrastructure supporting the projects through new wind-power agreements and a 94-megawatt battery storage system at the Kajaani site to help balance the electricity grid. The new data centres will also be designed with heat-recovery capabilities.

Separately, Finnish utility Fortum Oyj announced a 22-year power purchase agreement with Google covering the lifetime extension period of the Loviisa nuclear power plant. Under the agreement, Google will receive electricity equivalent to 50% of the capacity of the plant’s two reactors from 2030 through 2049, Fortum said.

Telecommunications operator Elisa Oyj and network infrastructure provider Nokia Oyj will provide connectivity for the new data centres, according to Google.

By Vafa Guliyeva