The Municipality of Liperi has been negotiating the leasing and sale of approximately nine hectares of land located in the new Välikangas industrial area for data centre operations. The site has attracted interest from the Norwegian-British data centre operator Scale42. The matter will be discussed at the Liperi municipal board meeting on 18/05/2026 and at the council meeting on 25/05/2026.
The data centre developer and operator intends to lease the land to carry out the necessary surveys for the construction of the data centre. Scale42 has the right to purchase the leased area at any time during the lease period, in accordance with a preliminary agreement enabling the purchase.
Construction of the data centre is planned to begin at the earliest in the beginning of 2027. The first phase of the project is expected to have a capacity of 60 megawatts. Based on commonly used estimates, data centres generate approximately 0.5–1 direct jobs per megawatt, which would mean around 30–60 direct jobs during the first phase. The total investment value of the project is estimated at approximately 800 million euros.
“We are happy to see that the new Välikangas industrial area has attracted the interest of international operators. The area is easy to build on and access, and it is located next to a power line. A data centre is ideally suited to this industrial area, and the site also offers good conditions for the project’s possible expansion, including the distribution of waste heat, creating further opportunities for local businesses and projects. This is an economically significant project and precisely the kind of development project that was sought when zoning the new industrial area”, says Pellervo Hämäläinen, Liperi’s municipal manager.
Hämäläinen believes that, when realised, the data centre will also bring new opportunities for the businesses located in the area.
“Scale42 is excited to be developing a new data centre project in Liperi. The Välikangas industrial area is an exceptional location that strengthens our growing presence in Eastern Finland alongside our project in Kitee. From the outset, Liperi’s municipal leadership and local stakeholders have shown a strong commitment to enabling sustainable digital infrastructure and long-term regional growth. Their support has been instrumental in advancing the project at pace.
This development is an opportunity to create skilled local jobs, provide heat reuse opportunities, and establish long-term high-value, export-orientated operations in the region. Scale42 is committed to delivering the project responsibly, efficiently, and in close partnership with the local community, and we look forward to bringing the project into operation as quickly as possible,” confirms William Tasney, CEO of Scale42.
A data centre is a large computer that stores, processes, and transmits information, forming the back-bone of the digital economy. Practically all web-based services we use rely on data centres, and it is expected that Scale42 will deploy infrastructure to house AI technology.