New Data Center Developments: May 2026

Source: James Walker,Executive Editor,Data Center Knowledge, May 5, 2026

The demand for new data centers isn’t showing any sign of slowing. With new projects being announced each week, keeping track of the latest data center developments is not always easy.

To keep you informed about the latest data center news involving design, construction, and related developments, we bring you the highlights from the past month.

- North America

- Latin America

- Europe

- Asia-Pacific

- Middle East and Africa

This curated selection will help you stay on top of the latest data center development news with ease.

North American Data Center Developments

In a month defined by continued hyperscale AI investment, North America also saw a wave of regulatory activity aimed at managing the infrastructure demands of large-scale data center growth.

Regulatory updates:

Maine: Governor Janet Mills vetoed a proposed statewide moratorium on large-scale data centers, offering a near-term reprieve while highlighting growing local opposition.

Wisconsin: Regulators approved changes to We Energies’ data center tariff, requiring large-load customers to fund the full cost of generation and grid infrastructure.

North Carolina: Lawmakers advanced legislation requiring hyperscale operators to cover power, water, and infrastructure costs, while limiting access to public incentives.

Related:Analysis: Hyperscaler Earnings Show AI Demand Outrunning Infrastructure

Together, these moves reflect a broader shift toward ensuring AI-driven demand does not outpace grid capacity or burden existing ratepayers.

Project announcements and expansions:

Aligned Data Centers unveiled Project Caprock, a 540 MW, 313-acre campus in Hale County, Texas, with six facilities totaling 1.65 million square feet and a projected $5 billion economic impact. Initial delivery is slated for Q1 2027.

Oracle is rethinking on-site power at its planned Project Jupiter campus in New Mexico, replacing gas turbines and diesel backup with a fuel-cell-based microgrid to support high-density AI workloads.

Elsewhere, Microsoft plans to acquire approximately 3,200 acres in Cheyenne, Wyoming, expanding its long-standing data center presence in the region and reinforcing its role as a growing US infrastructure hub.

In Illinois, the Joliet City Council approved the $20 billion Joliet Technology Center, a 795-acre campus developed by PowerHouse Data Centers and Hillwood. The project will span 24 buildings and reach up to 1.8 GW at full buildout.

In Maryland, AWS is reportedly evaluating a potential data center campus near the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant, though no agreements are currently in place.

The move comes as AWS expands its planned investment in Mississippi to $25 billion, with additional projects in Madison and Hinds counties further scaling its footprint in the state.

Related:Could Texas Overtake Northern Virginia as the Data Center Capital?

In California, DataBank and Goodman Group have formed a joint venture to develop a 32 MW facility in Vernon, targeting one of the most supply-constrained data center markets in the US.

EdgeCore Digital Infrastructure has announced the completion of two financial transactions totaling $1.5 billion to fund the construction of two single-tenant hyperscale data centers in Northern Virginia.

In Canada, Yondr Group has successfully energized its Toronto data center. The 27 MW facility is expected to be ready for service in mid-2026.

More North American data center news:

Chevron is in discussions with Microsoft and Engine No. 1 on a potential large-scale power project that could help define how future AI infrastructure is financed and delivered.

Soluna, a developer of green data centers, has acquired a 150 MW wind farm in West Texas, marking another step toward full vertical integration.

Amazon’s planned $200 billion investment in AI infrastructure is coming into sharper focus, raising questions about how much capacity could be built ahead of demand.

Latin American Data Center Developments

Related:New Data Center Developments: April 2026

In Latin America, Brazil continues to emerge as a focal point for AI-driven data center investment, with both capital inflows and large-scale project ambitions accelerating.

Investment firm I Squared Capital has acquired a majority stake in Elea Data Centers, in a move aimed at scaling the Brazilian operator’s footprint. Based in Rio de Janeiro, Elea operates nine campuses with more than 300 MW of capacity and over 1 GW in development, including its planned Rio AI City project, which could reach up to 3.2 GW powered by renewable energy.

In an interview with Data Center Knowledge, Elea founder and chairman Alessandro Lombardi said the deal brings long-term capital and infrastructure expertise at a time when demand for cloud, colocation, and AI capacity in Brazil is outpacing supply across key metro markets.

Separately, Scala Data Centers is advancing plans for its own large-scale AI-focused campus, positioning Brazil as a destination for hyperscale investment. The company is in discussions with US and Chinese technology firms and expects construction on the first phase to begin later this year.

Alongside this buildout, industry players are also investing in workforce development. A coalition led by the Equinix Foundation, alongside ODATA, Cisco, and Vertiv, is launching a training initiative in Brazil aimed at expanding the data center talent pipeline, with initial cohorts set to begin in mid-2026.

European Data Center Developments

In Europe, the push to standardize data center sustainability reporting is exposing a gap between regulatory requirements and operational visibility. Under the EU’s updated Energy Efficiency Directive, operators above a certain threshold must disclose energy, water, and sustainability data into a centralized database. However, according to Borderstep Institute researcher Simon Hinterholzer, the metrics required are not always supported by the data operators can currently access.

At the same time, investment across the region remains strong. TikTok has announced a €1 billion ($1.16 billion) data center in Lahti, Finland, following a similar billion-euro project in Kouvola in 2025, reinforcing the country’s role in its European expansion strategy.

In the UK, OpenAI has paused its planned multi-billion-pound Stargate UK data center project, citing concerns over high energy costs and regulation. The move comes as Microsoft agreed to rent data center capacity at a site in Narvik, Norway, originally tied to the Stargate initiative. Microsoft will rent 30,000 additional Nvidia’s Vera Rubin chips from neocloud provider Nscale at the Arctic Circle campus, building on a prior $6.2 billion commitment at the site.

Meanwhile, Microsoft has received approval to develop a data center campus at the Skelton Grange site in Yorkshire, UK.

Elsewhere, Google has announced its first data center in Kronstorf, Austria, expected to create 100 direct jobs as part of its broader European infrastructure investment.

Germany continues to see steady expansion. AtlasEdge is developing its LEV002 facility in Leverkusen, which will deliver 4.4 MW of capacity and approximately 3,400 square meters of technical space, with completion scheduled for Q2 2027.

Maincubes has also broken ground on its second Berlin data center, with its mainHub campus offering up to 186 MW of IT capacity.

In Southern Europe, Ark Data Centres has announced plans to invest more than €600 million ($689.1m) in a 45MW data center in Barcelona’s La Maquinista area.

Data4 has inaugurated a second data center in Poland at its Jawczyce campus near Warsaw. The new 10 MW facility forms part of a broader expansion that could see the campus reach 60 MW and approximately 50,000 square meters of gross floor area.

Asia-Pacific Data Center Builds

In Asia-Pacific data center news, investment continues to scale across both infrastructure and energy as operators respond to sustained AI-driven demand.

Digital Realty said it is targeting nearly S$7 billion ($5.4 billion) of total investment in Singapore, including more than S$4.3 billion ($3.3 billion) for new data center developments, reinforcing the city-state’s role as a key AI infrastructure hub for the region.

In Southeast Asia, DayOne Data Centers has committed to a cumulative investment of more than MYR 28 billion ($7 billion) in Malaysia by the end of 2026, alongside plans to significantly expand its workforce and local operations as it scales the country into its largest global footprint.

Meanwhile, Microsoft is deepening its presence across the region, with plans to invest more than $1 billion in Thailand between 2026 and 2028 to expand cloud and AI infrastructure and support broader digital adoption.

More Asia-Pacific data center news this month:

Alibaba and China Telecom have launched a new data center in southern China designed for AI training and inferencing.

Amazon has signed nine new renewable energy agreements in Australia, adding 430 MW and bringing its total capacity in the country to nearly 1 GW (990 MW) once fully operational.

Google is reportedly preparing to begin construction on its $15 billion data center projects in Andhra Pradesh, India, with groundbreaking expected in April 2026.

Middle East and Africa Data Center Investments

In the Middle East and Africa, expansion is being driven by a mix of hyperscale land acquisition, regional connectivity upgrades, and growing demand for AI-ready infrastructure.

Equinix has acquired ZAR 890 million ($52.3 million) worth of land across Johannesburg and Cape Town, securing approximately 327,000 square meters to support future developments capable of delivering an estimated 160 MW of additional data center capacity.

In the Middle East, Dutch developer Volt has entered the Dubai market through a joint venture to develop a 29 MW data center at Dubai Silicon Oasis, with plans to scale the site to 129 MW as demand for AI infrastructure accelerates.

Across West Africa, Digital Realty has activated a new internet exchange point of presence for the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN) at its Lekki facility in Lagos. The site also serves as a landing point for the 2Africa subsea cable system, strengthening regional and international connectivity.

Elsewhere, Hurricane Electric has established a new point of presence at Open Access Data Centres’ DUR1 facility in Durban, expanding connectivity in one of Africa’s largest commercial hubs.