OpenAI announced the launch of a Stargate-branded AI data center in Norway, marking its first such initiative in Europe. The project will be developed through a 50-50 joint venture between British infrastructure firm Nscale and Norwegian energy company Aker. As part of the arrangement, OpenAI will act as an “off-taker,” securing capacity from the facility to support its growing AI workloads.
The data center will be built in Kvandal, near Narvik in northern Norway, an area known for its rich hydropower resources, low regional electricity consumption, and limited grid transmission capacity. The facility is designed to run entirely on renewable energy and will deliver up to 100,000 Nvidia GPUs by the end of 2026, with significant expansion plans beyond that. At 230 megawatts, it is set to become one of the largest AI data centers in Europe.
Nscale and Aker have each pledged approximately $1 billion toward the first 20MW phase of the development. The move underscores growing investment in AI-specific infrastructure, with Nvidia GPUs remaining the preferred choice for handling intensive AI tasks. The technology’s scalability and performance have made it central to modern AI development across training, inference, and deployment.
This Norwegian project is part of a broader global initiative under OpenAI’s Stargate program. Initially introduced in the U.S., Stargate is a large-scale infrastructure collaboration involving OpenAI, Oracle, SoftBank, and MGX from the UAE, aiming to invest up to $500 billion over the next four years to build out advanced AI ecosystems.
In June, OpenAI and its partners revealed plans for a Stargate campus in the UAE, signaling their intention to expand internationally. These moves come as European governments advocate for “sovereign AI,” a framework that emphasizes processing and storing AI data within the continent. OpenAI’s new venture in Norway aligns with this vision, providing locally-based infrastructure while maintaining global technological leadership.
Companies like Nvidia and OpenAI have increasingly positioned themselves as enablers of sovereign AI, helping countries build local capacity. During a recent tour in Europe, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang urged nations to invest in dedicated AI infrastructure. French AI firm Mistral also announced plans to utilize Nvidia GPUs in a forthcoming data center in France, further reflecting the continent’s strategic pivot toward homegrown AI solutions.
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