France’s EDF to offer grid-ready data centre sites

France

PARIS, February 11, 2025 – French state-owned electric utility company EDF will launch a call for expressions of interest from data centre companies for four plots of EDF-owned land connected to the national electrical grid, the company announced on Monday.

The initiative was launched during the AI Action Summit being held in Paris and aims to remove investment barriers for data centre companies and accelerate project development. The ready-to-use plots can reduce the time needed to complete data centre projects by several years, according to EDF.

So far, EDF has identified four industrial sites among its land holdings with a total available power supply of approximately 2 GW. The company aims to select an additional two sites by 2026.

“In France, thanks to EDF and its mix mainly composed of nuclear and renewables, our electricity is abundant, competitive and low-carbon. This is a major asset to attract players in the digital sector whose electricity needs are linked to the development of AI,” said Stéphane Raison, director of EDF in charge of the installation of large consumption sites.