Construction begins on Denmark’s first fully Danish-owned hyperscale data center

Construction has begun on Dansk Data Center 1 (DDC1) at the Port of Esbjerg, marking an important milestone in the development of Denmark’s first fully Danish-owned and operated hyperscale data center.

The initial 11.5 MW facility is the first phase of the wider development announced by Thylander in 2025. It will operate as a multi-tenant colocation data center and is expected to be commissioned in October 2027.

DDC1 is owned by PensionDanmark, the Thylander Group and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), with CIP investing through its CI Microgrid Electrification Fund. PensionDanmark is the lead investor, while Thylander will be responsible for operations, maintenance and asset management.

“We welcome new players and investments that add capacity and fresh dynamics to the Danish data center market. Breaking ground on DDC1 also shows how far the Danish ecosystem has come. We now have the expertise, partnerships and investment appetite needed to develop and operate data centers with strong Danish roots,” says Henrik Hansen, CEO of Datacenter Industrien.

Designed for energy and local integration

Located in an established industrial area at the Port of Esbjerg, DDC1 has been developed in collaboration with local stakeholders and with a focus on integration into the energy system.

Energy management technology from Plexar will allow the facility to adjust its electricity consumption according to grid conditions, while energy storage will support grid balancing. In cooperation with DIN Forsyning, the project will also seek to make excess heat available for district heating. A closed-loop cooling system will minimize ongoing water consumption.

“DDC1 is built on a simple idea: Denmark should not only consume digital capacity but also take part in owning, developing and operating the infrastructure behind it. With Danish pension capital, strong local partnerships and a design that connects the data center with the energy system, we are showing that digital infrastructure can create value far beyond the data center itself,” says Anders Frich Mathiesen, CEO of Thylander Data Centers and Chair of Datacenter Industrien.