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Research · As of November 2026
Data Centres & Digital Infrastructure
Computing capacity has become a location factor – and Austria has ground to make up. Key figures, grid situation and outlook for Vienna and the regions, in a European context.
Key figures
The market in eight figures – and why it is gaining importance.
of Austria’s data centre capacity is located in Vienna. Graz follows with 7%, Linz with 4%, Salzburg with 3%.
Industry association, 2026of data centre capacity per €1 bn of economic output – the EU average is 645 kW, four times as much.
Industry association, 2026of grid access requests from data centres have been submitted to the transmission grid; around 550 MW have been firmly committed.
APG, 2026Google Kronstorf: first phase 150 MW, expansion to a campus of up to 500 MW applied for.
Netz OÖ, Google, 2026have formed the Microsoft cloud region Austria since 2025: Schwechat, Vösendorf and the Mödling area.
Microsoft, 2025is the average construction cost per MW of capacity in Vienna – ranked 8th among the most expensive markets in Europe.
Industry association, 2026of development costs are attributable to the land, around 21% to the power infrastructure.
Industry study 2026, North AmericaThe EU reporting obligation applies from 500 kW of IT capacity, the obligation to use waste heat from 1 MW.
Directive (EU) 2023/1791Significance of the asset class
Data centres are the physical foundation of the cloud, artificial intelligence and digital government. Their location logic differs fundamentally from other commercial real estate: what is scarce is not land but secured electrical capacity – and the time until it becomes available.
For Austria, the question is strategic: the federal government identifies the undersupply of computing capacity as a weakness of the business location. Local capacity means lower latency, data storage within the country and investments of up to billions per project – with knock-on effects for grid expansion, district heating and regional value creation.
Current status
Vienna and Upper Austria: from colocation market to hyperscale location.
Vienna is the country’s only established data centre market. With the market entry of Microsoft (cloud region since 2025) and Google (Kronstorf, Upper Austria), the spectrum has broadened from a colocation market to a hyperscale location.
The bottleneck is the grid. Requests of around 2,500 MW are matched by firm commitments of about 550 MW; Kronstorf requires a new 220 kV supply ring and the expansion of substations. A mandatory environmental impact assessment (EIA) for data centres is under political discussion, with proposals starting at 50 MW.
In a European comparison, Vienna is close to the major markets – 600 km as the crow flies to Frankfurt – and is well placed as a location for Central and Eastern Europe.
Vienna & surroundings
Established market with colocation and hyperscale; the Microsoft region is spread across three sites in the south and east.
- 84% of national capacity
- Construction cost ≈ $11 m per MW
- St Patrick: site acquisition Microsoft, Vösendorf, approx. 60,000 m²
Upper Austria
Second hyperscale location, connected via the transmission grid.
- Google Kronstorf: 150 MW in phase 1
- Expansion to up to 500 MW applied for
- New 220 kV supply ring
Grid & regulation
Capacity and permits determine the timeline and value of a site.
- ≈ 2,500 MW requested, ≈ 550 MW committed
- Reporting obligation from 500 kW, waste heat from 1 MW
- Mandatory EIA under discussion
Data basis: Austrian Power Grid, Netz Oberösterreich, company information, industry association (2026), Directive (EU) 2023/1791; analysis by St Patrick Real Estate.
Development & outlook
Outlook 2027: whoever has power has the site.
Our assessment based on the data cited and our project experience since 2019.
Grid
The number of connection requests exceeds committed capacity many times over. We expect grid commitments and expansion paths – not land prices – to determine site selection in the coming years.
Land
Land with confirmed grid capacity (powered land) is becoming a scarce product category of its own, with a significant price premium over ordinary commercial land.
Technology
With racks of 50 kW and more, liquid cooling is becoming established; campus projects are planned in phases over ten years or more.
Waste heat
The obligation to use waste heat from 1 MW makes proximity to district heating networks a location criterion – and municipalities natural partners.
Regulation
A mandatory EIA would lengthen procedures. We expect early coordination with the municipality, the province and the grid operator to become even more important.
The full version: Data Centre Market Report Austria 2026.
Austria compared with FLAP-D, grid situation, projects and forecasts – as a PDF download (German edition; English version in preparation).