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- Bain Capital acquires 80% of AQ Compute, aiming to build a leading European data center platform powered by clean energy.
- Multi-billion Euro investment to drive sustainable data center expansion in key markets like Oslo, Barcelona, and Milan.
- Partnership targets hyperscale and AI customers, addressing Europe’s demand for sustainable, high-performance computing.
Bain Capital has acquired an 80% stake in AQ Compute, Aquila Group’s data center business, marking a major move to create a sustainable data center platform across Europe. AQ Compute, founded by Aquila Group in 2020, specializes in modular, AI-ready, and clean-energy-powered data centers. This new strategic partnership involves a multi-billion Euro investment to meet the rising demand for sustainable, high-performance data infrastructure in Europe.
Ali Haroon, Partner at Bain Capital, highlighted the growth potential, stating,
“The European data center sector presents an attractive market opportunity, driven by robust cloud demand, a need for high-performance computing and AI deployments, and data sovereignty across the region. Through this partnership with Aquila Group, we bring a differentiated, renewable energy angle to tackle the ever-growing power challenges in this critical part of Europe’s infrastructure.”
Sustainable Growth Strategy
The Bain Capital-Aquila alliance aims to position AQ Compute as a leader in sustainable data center operations, setting standards for the industry. Building on AQ Compute’s Oslo data center launch in 2024, the partners are accelerating projects in cities like Barcelona and Milan, with a focus on clean energy integration wherever possible.
Rafael Coste Campos, Managing Director at Bain Capital, added,
“We are thrilled to bring our deep European real estate sector expertise and our multi-layered experience growing companies with complex infrastructure services, tenant relationships and talent attraction to AQ Compute.”
Related Article: Data Centers to Emit 2.5 Billion Tons of CO2 by 2030, Driving Demand for Decarbonization Solutions, Morgan Stanley Report
Leveraging Global Expertise
This partnership will benefit from Bain Capital’s extensive global experience, including its successful development of Bridge Data Centers in Asia and investments in DC BLOX in the US.
Michael Huber, Principal at Bain Capital, remarked,
“Bain Capital’s first European investment in data centers means we now have a truly global platform…complementing our experience investing in and building one of the largest data center platforms in Asia.”
Roman Rosslenbroich, Co-founder and CEO of Aquila Group, emphasized the alignment of growth with sustainability goals:
“The rapid growth in data demands presents both a challenge and an opportunity — while more data centers are essential, they must be sustainable…With our continued 20% stake, we will ensure AQ Compute’s growth aligns with our long-term vision for sustainable infrastructure.”
Future Outlook
With support from Bain Capital, AQ Compute is set to expand its sustainable infrastructure footprint across Europe, focusing on high-demand markets for hyperscale and AI-driven data services.
Markus Holzer, Chairman of AQ Compute, stated,
“This partnership with Bain Capital…allows us to set new standards in sustainable data center operations across Europe.”
This collaboration highlights the transformative role of sustainable data infrastructure in Europe, meeting the digital and environmental needs of the region while leveraging Aquila’s clean energy expertise.