€7 billion data centre in Abrantes to open in 2028 with foreign capital, says investor

The data centre being planned for Abrantes will be developed in three phases and will become operational in the second quarter of 2028, according to the partner of the company behind the project, EDC One, which says that the investment will total seven billion euros.

José Meneses da Silva Moura says that, in addition to the investment from the company he heads, he has other national and foreign partners. “We have international, national and local partners that we will disclose as soon as it is appropriate”, says the businessman from Maia, hinting that these are companies linked to the data centre, construction and energy sectors with more than 20 years of experience in both the European and North American markets.

The first phase of this investment – which has gained media attention because it represents almost the same amount that Start Campus is investing in Sines (€8.5 billion) – will have 300 MW (megawatts) and will operate on brownfield sites (abandoned industrial land), which will undergo a large-scale refurbishment of existing buildings on the site to accommodate one of the buildings, explains José Moura. According to the regional press, this involves the former RPP Solar site.

The plan is to expand capacity from 300 MW to 800 MW by the end of the third phase. The investor, who also heads Diverstock Investments, confirms that EDC One is a special purpose vehicle created for this specific project, but goes further and explains that the term ‘EDC One’ indicates that it is the first investment “of others that we expect will follow”, namely EDC Two and EDC Three.

This explains why the value per MW is significantly different from the market average. In other words, ECO’s calculations show that the value of the MW for all phases (800 MW) would total around 8.7 million euros each, while the estimated cost per MW (of 1 GW of data centre supply) in Europe is 12 million euros, according to CBRE.

When asked whether EDC One had submitted a formal application for PIN (Potential National Interest) status, José Moura denied this and clarified that it only has PIM (Municipal Interest Project) approval. “However, the project has been duly monitored by the entities responsible for supporting international investment onboarding in our country”, he assures.

This information is in line with that provided by the Portuguese Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade (AICEP) to Jornal de Negócios: “The company EDC ONE Lda. does not currently have any PIN applications, either under consideration or being monitored”.

This data centre project in Abrantes was made public by the Médio Tejo newspaper and local radio station Antena Livre, which reported that, at a meeting of the Abrantes Municipal Council held on 2 September, tax exemptions (IMI, IMT and surcharge) totalling €16.2 million were granted to EDC One as part of a PIM application.

Speaking to ECO, the businessman also said that he meets all the eligibility and feasibility criteria for placing the data centre in that location, not least because he has been working on this development for almost three years. “Our teams are currently in the detailed master planning phase, which will in turn be submitted to the Municipality of Abrantes for consideration. The remaining licences are those relating to the project itself, which has not yet been submitted for approval”, he adds.

Regarding the choice of Abrantes, he argues that it is due to the growth of the technology market and the Free Technology Zone. “There is strong global demand for computing and data storage capacity. Abrantes, and specifically Pego, have excellent infrastructure and territorial conditions to support this sector. In addition, the designation of the Abrantes Free Technology Zone also helped to consolidate the decision to locate the project in the region”, he explains.

EDC One, created just over a year ago, has equity capital of around €4,400 and is dedicated to the purchase and sale of real estate. Headquartered in Maia (Porto Metropolitan Area) and with no record of employees or revenue generation, this summer it changed the name of the former PGAI – Participação e Gestão de Ativos Imobiliários, Lda., according to information consulted by ECO.

ECO also contacted Abrantes Municipal Council and the Ministry of Infrastructure at the beginning of last week, but had not received any replies by the time this article was published.