Microsoft has officially opened its new Danish data centre region to provide Microsoft customers in Denmark with local and secure cloud infrastructure.
Referred to as Denmark East, the new data centre region has campuses in Høje Taastrup, Køge and Roskilde on Zealand. The region has been designed with sustainability as a critical priority, with Microsoft having entered into long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) to provide 130 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy every year. It will also use HVO for backup power generation across the region.
“We are strengthening Denmark’s digital resilience with a secure-by-default foundation that gives customers greater control, low latency and local data residency,” said Mette Kaagaard, general manager for Microsoft Denmark & Iceland.
“It marks an important step in our long-term commitment to Denmark, enabling stronger sovereignty controls and new opportunities for innovation across the public and private sectors — built in close collaboration with Danish partners and guided by values such as transparency, accountability and sustainability.”
The news comes shortly after Microsoft took over OpenAI’s data centre project in Texas. Data centre developer Crusoe said it is working with the tech giant to build two new AI Factory buildings and an on-site power plant in Abilene, Texas, next to where Crusoe has been building a large computing campus for OpenAI and Oracle.
Denmark is a strong priority for Microsoft, with its cloud expected to generate substantial economic growth and support the green transition across the country. Over the next four years, the tech giant and its partners expect to spend US$4.5 billion in Denmark on local services and products to strengthen regional business communities.
For every $1 of Microsoft cloud revenue, more than $6 is generated in the wider partner ecosystem, the company said. This is expected to grow to nearly $8, by 2029.
Denmark East plans to support essential business sectors, including healthcare, finance, manufacturing, energy and the public sector. Microsoft said they will benefit from local data residency, enhanced digital resilience and more advanced cloud and AI services.
The three host municipalities have expressed strong support for the new data centre region, with each strategically preparing to attract advanced digital infrastructure and technology investments that support local growth and Denmark’s national digital goals.
“With construction now completed, we are already seeing positive effects – for local jobs, skills development and our young people,” said Kurt Scheelsbeck, acting Mayor of one of the municipalities, Høje-Taastrup. “The new park, which creates a green and safe transition between the data centre and nearby residential areas, is a strong example of how development can go hand in hand with nature and quality of life. At the same time, the collaboration on local projects through ChangeX strengthens our schools, associations and communities.”
To honour its carbon negative by 2030 commitment, Microsoft said it is accelerating its work to advance sustainability worldwide. In Denmark, this means its data centres have been purposefully designed with zero water use for cooling and to operate at a power usage effectiveness (PUE) of 1.16.
The company said its data centre site in Høje-Taastrup will be Microsoft’s first operational at-scale waste heat recovery in Denmark – with the data centres engineered to recovery surplus heat for local district heating systems. It will have the capability to heat around 6,000 homes in the local area at first, with future expansion planned in Køge, the company said.
“Together, these commitments reflect Microsoft’s belief that digital sovereignty is not a one-size-fits-all requirement, but a continuum of needs,” the company said in its announcement. “This flexible approach enables customers to maintain control over their data, without sacrificing the scale, security, or innovation of the Microsoft cloud.”
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