Data centres: growth drivers of digitalisation, test of the energy transition

A document in the personal cloud, the AI chatbot at the workplace or digital simulations of industrial processes – behind all these applications, in private and commercial contexts, are data centers. They process huge amounts of data and are the backbone of the AI boom of recent years. The operators are responding to the increasing demand with new locations and sharply increasing capacity. The investment sums are growing worldwide. Oracle, Meta, Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon have announced investments of more than 600 billion US dollars.

However, an international comparison shows how much pressure is growing. Countries such as the USA are expanding faster and are relying on large capacities at an early stage. In Germany, many projects are waiting longer for their grid connection. This slows down the expansion and makes investments more difficult.

Regulation, energy and location issues dominate the debate

At the same time, the governance and regulatory is growing. Municipalities are paying more attention to energy, area and connections. This leads to local conflicts, such as in Groß-Gerau in Hesse, where a project recently failed due to resistance from the local administration. Nevertheless, data centers create jobs and strengthen regional industries. Many cities are already using them as part of their local energy and economic strategy. The expansion therefore remains an important location factor.

Banks: More than just lenders

This is where banks come in. They finance data centers, evaluate technical concepts and assess long-term risks. They combine sustainability and profitability and take into account the interests of operators, municipalities and energy suppliers. The Green Rocks data center in Mainz, which is jointly financed by ING and Helaba, is a good example. The planned data center uses water from the Rhine for cooling and feeds the residual heat into the municipal district heating network. A dedicated green loan ensures that the funds are used sustainably. A first part of the data centre will go into operation at the end of 2026.

Digital infrastructures are growing rapidly and are of great strategic importance. In 2025, 12 billion euros were spend for corresponding hardware - more than ever before, as an analysis by Bitkom e.V. shows. And the performance of all German data centers increased by 9% in 2025. This increases the requirements for energy efficiency, site development and acceptance among the population. Operators and municipalities must work together to ensure data centers generate local value and fit into energy strategies. Banks as mediators play a central role in this: they secure investments, enable sustainable solutions and actively shape the digital transformation.