There are already 200 active data centers in Italy, with another 83 on the way: but there is no national law
The active data centers in Italy are already 200, and another 83 will be built in the coming years. This data emerges at a time when the sector, until recently perceived as a set of almost invisible technical infrastructures, has transformed into an industrial sector capable of moving billions in investments.
Just a few weeks ago, Lombardy introduced a regional law that regulates where and how to build these facilities and what fees companies must pay to municipalities: this is the first regulation of its kind in Italy, but at the national level, an equivalent law still does not exist.
According to the Data Center Observatory research from the Polytechnic University of Milan, cited by Il Post, the sector has attracted over 7 billion euros in investments over the last three years, a figure that could triple by 2028. The province of Milan remains the epicenter of this growth: here is concentrated the largest number of facilities and 68% of the power installed nationally. Another hub is forming around Rome, where around twenty projects have already been registered.
The state of data centers in Italy
The market operates on two main tracks. On one side are the colocators, who build the building with energy, cooling, and connections to then lease it to clients; on the other are the hyperscalers like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, who construct on their own.
The Department of Architecture and Urban Studies at the Polytechnic University of Milan analyzed 70 projects in the Milan area and identified a third group of actors, often foreign: telecommunications companies, investment funds, logistics groups, and real estate developers who buy land, initiate urban planning processes with municipalities, and then sell to other tech companies before building, making a margin from mediation.
For local administrations, data centers represent a concrete economic opportunity. Those who build pay urbanization fees destined for roads, energy networks, and sewage systems, often adding compensatory works such as bike paths or energy efficiency interventions.
In Rho, where Amazon Web Services is constructing a facility costing 400 million euros, the Urban Planning Councillor Edoardo Marini set a fee of 100 euros per square meter against the 60 euros provided by regional tables, justifying it by the investment itself, estimated between 6,000 and 10,000 euros per square meter. In Settimo Milanese, the municipality collected over 7.5 million euros between 2014 and 2024. In Magenta, the operation on the former Novaceta site is presented as an intervention of 19 million euros, of which 13 are allocated to public works. In Pregnana Milanese, where three facilities will be built on former Citroën, Iveco, and Olivetti areas, Mayor Angelo Bosani refers to an 'unmissable opportunity'.
However, concerns related to land consumption remain. The Lombardy law favors disused industrial areas but does not prohibit building on vacant land; it only makes it more costly, which is a relative deterrent for companies with ample capital availability. At the national level, a delegated law is under discussion in the Senate, already approved by the Chamber, which, according to Democratic Party deputy Lorenzo Basso, should be improved by making it mandatory to locate in disused industrial areas, including former coal-fired power plants that were decommissioned last December.
Then there is the energy issue: by 2025, requests for connections to the high-voltage grid have exceeded 60 gigawatts, almost a hundred times the power currently installed by the sector. The energy sector is also moving on this front. Eni, which already manages its own data center in Ferrera Erbognone (Pavia), has announced a new facility dedicated to artificial intelligence, a sign that the energy needs of AI are already reshaping the balances of national energy policy.