As investment in artificial intelligence accelerates across Europe, Nordic data center operator atNorth is implementing a significant expansion of its operations, with a core strategy centered on sustainable practices and renewable energy. The company is scaling its footprint across Iceland, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, with plans for Norway, capitalizing on the region’s advantages in cooler climates and abundant green power to meet the growing demand for high-capacity computing infrastructure. This growth is guided by a philosophy that embeds sustainability into every stage of development, from site selection and design to long-term community integration, positioning the company to serve the next wave of technological advancement responsibly.
Leading this strategic growth is Chief Development Officer Anna Kristín Pálsdóttir, whose engineering background informs the company’s structured and systematic approach to scaling its operations. The Nordic region is experiencing extreme growth in its data center market, emerging as a critical alternative to the constrained FLAP-D markets of Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris, and Dublin. atNorth, which began its operations in Iceland in 2009, is leveraging its 16-year history in the region to build on a reputation of trust and responsibility. The company’s expansion is not merely about increasing capacity but about creating a blueprint for future data centers where environmental stewardship and technological innovation are intrinsically linked, aiming to support both enterprise and hyperscale clients for decades to come.
A Strategic Blueprint for Nordic Growth
atNorth is executing a multi-faceted expansion plan across the Nordic countries to bolster its data center portfolio. The company is actively enlarging two of its three operational facilities in its home country of Iceland while pushing forward with new developments abroad. In addition to its four existing operational sites in Finland and Sweden, the company is on the verge of opening its first data center in Denmark, with a second Danish facility already under development. Further facilities are also planned for both Finland and Sweden, demonstrating a broad regional strategy. These simultaneous projects, with five to six active expansions running at once, require meticulous coordination and resource management.
The company has also secured a significant land parcel in Sweden that is earmarked for a future megasite, signaling its ambition to serve large-scale hyperscale customers who require substantial capacity. In Norway, atNorth is currently evaluating the best way to develop a recent power allocation, indicating a methodical approach to entering new markets. Pálsdóttir emphasizes the importance of learning and iteration in this rapid growth phase. She notes that the team strives to “only make a mistake once and learn from it,” a principle she calls essential for innovation. This structured methodology, combined with a customer-centric viewpoint, ensures that each new facility meets atNorth’s high standards and delivers clear value to its clients.
Sustainability as a Foundational Principle
For atNorth, sustainability is not a supplementary goal or a checkbox item but rather the bedrock of its entire business model. “It’s not something we are trying to fit into our business model,” stated Pálsdóttir, adding, “it is the foundation of what we do.” This responsible approach begins at the earliest stages of planning and site selection and permeates every aspect of the company’s operations. The ultimate goal is to work toward a future of net carbon neutrality, a commitment that shapes both strategic decisions and daily practices. The company’s focus on the Nordic region is a direct result of this ethos, driven primarily by the area’s abundant and accessible renewable energy sources.
Pioneering Heat Reuse
A key pillar of atNorth’s environmental strategy is its proactive approach to the circular economy, particularly through heat reuse. The company has established a firm policy not to initiate any new data center project unless there is a viable opportunity to harness and repurpose the waste heat generated by the facility. This practice transforms a data center from an isolated energy consumer into an integrated part of the local energy ecosystem. By collaborating with local partners, atNorth works to ensure that this captured heat meets a genuine community need, contributing positively to the environment in which it operates. This commitment extends throughout the entire development cycle, from initial design to long-term operational partnerships.
A Circular Economy Approach
Beyond heat reuse, atNorth’s participation in the circular economy involves broader collaborations with local partners to find innovative ways to reuse waste created from its operations. “This involves collaborating with local partners on ideas about how to reuse waste created from our operations and make sure we think about how it meets a local need,” Pálsdóttir explained. This mindset reflects a deep respect for the local environment and a desire to create a symbiotic relationship with the surrounding community. This philosophy is about more than just minimizing environmental impact; it is about actively contributing to the local economy and infrastructure in a sustainable manner, ensuring the company’s presence provides a lasting positive benefit.
Community and Environment in Site Selection
atNorth’s commitment to responsible development is clearly reflected in its meticulous site selection process. The company prioritizes the use of brownfield sites—land that has been previously developed for industrial use—for its new data centers. This strategy, evident in its new footprints in Denmark and Finland, aims to repurpose land and protect undeveloped greenbelt areas from new construction. By revitalizing former industrial locations, atNorth can build its advanced facilities without contributing to urban sprawl or ecological disruption, fitting new technology into the existing fabric of a community.
Community engagement is another critical component of the company’s strategy. Pálsdóttir highlights the importance of open communication and partnership with local residents and municipalities. “We really like to participate in meetings where everyone that lives close to our operations comes and gets to know our company and what we do,” she stated. This transparency builds trust and ensures that the company’s growth aligns with the interests of its neighbors. An example of this approach involved a facility near a lake, where atNorth collaborated on projects to ensure local residents could continue to use the water optimally alongside the data center’s operations. These initiatives demonstrate how the company balances its commercial objectives with a profound sense of environmental and social stewardship.
Future-Proofing with Modular Design
The technical foundation of atNorth’s data centers is built on modular and scalable design principles. The company utilizes a simple, prefabricated data blueprint that is easy to construct, upgrade, and modify. This modular approach is not only cost-effective and energy-efficient but also provides crucial flexibility to meet the rapidly evolving demands of the technology industry, particularly the rise of AI and high-performance computing (HPC). “We have to be prepared with a good foundation so that we can meet changing needs rapidly,” Pálsdóttir explained, emphasizing the ability to accommodate new technologies that benefit customer workloads.
This adaptability is further enhanced by a hybrid approach to cooling, which allows atNorth to adjust and scale its services as its customers’ needs grow and change. By learning from the rapid growth cycles of other industries, atNorth has developed a strategy that avoids costly retrofits and ensures its facilities remain competitive and efficient throughout their long operational lives. The focus is on marrying innovation with sustainability, where the most compelling technological advancements are those that contribute to a more circular and sustainable economy. This forward-thinking design philosophy ensures that the infrastructure being built today is prepared for the technological challenges of tomorrow.
Building a Long-Term, Responsible Presence
atNorth distinguishes itself with a long-term perspective on its investments and operations, focusing on building a lasting presence rather than achieving immediate returns. “When we are doing site selection or breaking ground on a new site, we don’t do it for business success for this year or next,” Pálsdóttir emphasized. “We are doing it so that we can be there for the decades to come.” This philosophy is reflected in every aspect of the company’s planning, from its robust infrastructure design to its deep engagement with local communities. With a 16-year history in Iceland, the company has built a strong reputation that it leverages to foster trust and collaboration across the entire Nordic region.
Looking ahead, atNorth is preparing for even larger-scale operations to attract major enterprise and hyperscale clients. The company plans to actively develop two mega sites in 2026, one in Denmark and one in Finland, which will offer higher capacity for customers with substantial infrastructure needs. This strategy to operate a variety of sites, from smaller metropolitan facilities to large-scale campuses, provides customers with a range of excellent options to suit different workloads. By continuing to foster “excellent cooperation with both municipalities and all the people living close to us,” atNorth is laying the groundwork for sustained, responsible growth well into the future.