Virtus Data Centres has secured a £2.45 billion financing package to support its expansion across the UK and Europe.

The committed funding includes a £1.2 billion green capex facility, although the wider package should give Virtus a significant runway to fuel its expansion. In fact, the firm has already stated that it will use some of the cash towards the continued development of its 78MW Saunderton campus in Buckinghamshire, future investment in LONDON19 in Slough and to push the brand in Europe. 

It’s another case of significant financing being secured to fuel further expansion during the AI era. Earlier this year, Echelon secured a similarly-large €1.7 billion loan to fuel its European expansion, while Nebius has raised as much as $5 billion to build out its AI infrastructure. 

The scale of the financing reflects the sheer cost of developing data centre capacity during the AI boom, with Virtus CEO Adam Eaton recently noting that its Saunderton development alone represents £1.4 billion. 

When Virtus first unveiled Saunderton in 2024, the four-building campus was expected to provide 75MW of capacity and be ready for service by the second quarter of 2026, but that has since scaled slightly – with the planned IT load now sitting at 78MW. 

Funding a wider European pipeline

Saunderton isn’t the only new facility currently being developed by Virtus, however. LONDON19 is another previously announced part of its expansion. The facility is planned for the Slough Trading Estate and will provide 32.5MW of IT load, with Segro responsible for developing the powered shell – it’s a similar deal to what Pure DC has secured in the same area. 

In addition to its UK expansion plans, Virtus is also further extending its facilities in Europe. The company announced its Wustermark campus in Brandenburg in 2023, while it’s also developing a 48MW facility near Milan.

Virtus CEO Adam Eaton commented, “This financing marks an important milestone for Virtus. It reflects the strength and stability of our existing portfolio, our track record of delivery and the opportunities ahead.

“The capital flexibility it provides will enable us to continue investing in high-quality data centre infrastructure and support our ongoing growth across the European market.”