France Artificial Intelligence (AI) Optimised Data Center Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2025 - 2030)

France Artificial Intelligence (AI) Optimised Data Center Market Analysis by Mordor Intelligence

The France Artificial Intelligence Optimised Data Center Market size is estimated at USD 0.92 billion in 2025, and is expected to reach USD 3.72 billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 32.28% during the forecast period (2025-2030).

The French AI data center market is experiencing significant growth, driven by substantial public and private investments, a strong emphasis on sustainability, and a strategic focus on digital sovereignty. The French government has launched the France 2030 national investment plan, allocating EUR 1 billion to promote renewable energy development, which supports the growth of sustainable data centers. The increasing adoption of cloud services, AI, and machine learning technologies across various sectors is fueling demand for advanced data center infrastructure.

In France, the AI data center market shows similar growth patterns. Recent developments include OVHcloud's expansion of its AI infrastructure and Orange's investment in new data centers equipped with AI capabilities. The French government's EUR 1.8 billion AI strategy has attracted investments from global cloud providers. Paris emerged as a key location for AI data centers, with companies like Microsoft and Google establishing facilities. The country's focus on sustainable data centers and renewable energy usage aligns with its environmental goals while supporting AI infrastructure development.

GPU cloud provider Fluidstack has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the French government to construct an AI supercomputer in France. The project, announced at the AI Action Summit in Paris, aims to be one of the world's largest low-carbon AI supercomputers. The facility will provide 1 GW of dedicated AI computing capacity and will operate on France's nuclear-based energy infrastructure. The company plans to expand the facility's capacity beyond 1GW by 2028.

Acceleration of GPU-Hungry Gen-AI Workloads Toward Sovereign French Clouds

France's stringent data sovereignty requirements, coupled with increasing public sector AI adoption and enterprise concerns over intellectual property protection, are driving the shift toward sovereign infrastructure for generative AI workloads. This trend is enabling French cloud providers to experience significant growth, as they offer advanced GPU capabilities alongside compliance with European regulatory standards. The market is being shaped by organizations prioritizing infrastructure that ensures data residency and sovereignty while addressing the growing demand for generative AI applications.

In May 2025, OVHcloud unveiled its "AI Souverain" platform featuring over 1,000 NVIDIA H100 GPUs across its French data centers, securing EUR 75 million in contracts from public sector and regulated industry clients within the first month. CEO Michel Paulin emphasized that "French organizations are increasingly unwilling to compromise on sovereignty for their generative AI initiatives, particularly for applications involving sensitive data or strategic intellectual property," noting that the platform's compliance with SecNumCloud certification was a decisive factor for many clients.

Abundant Nuclear & Renewable Energy Mix Enabling Low-Carbon AI Compute

France's unique energy mix, dominated by nuclear power and complemented by renewable energy, is driving the development of low-carbon AI data centers. This energy profile allows operators to meet the high power demands of AI workloads while maintaining environmental sustainability and cost efficiency. The availability of stable, low-carbon electricity is positioning France as a competitive hub for AI infrastructure, attracting organizations with strong sustainability commitments.

In March 2025, Digital Realty announced a EUR 500 million expansion of its Paris campus, specifically marketed as "Nuclear-Powered AI," highlighting the facility's access to Électricité de France's low-carbon generation. The company's press release emphasized that applications running in its French facilities produce 85% less carbon emissions than equivalent workloads in Germany, with CEO William Stein noting that "France's stable, low-carbon electricity is becoming a decisive competitive advantage as AI power requirements escalate."

Government AI Investments via "France 2030", Bpifrance & SIF Subsidies

France's coordinated public investment strategy, including the France 2030 plan, Bpifrance innovation financing, and Strategic Investment Fund (SIF), is driving the development of AI infrastructure. These funding mechanisms are catalyzing private investment and fostering regional AI ecosystems, ensuring that computational capacity aligns with the country's ambitions for AI leadership. This approach is creating opportunities for infrastructure projects that combine advanced AI capabilities with energy efficiency and compliance with French technology standards.

In May 2025 The French government announced a EUR 200 million funding package through the France 2030 program specifically for AI data center infrastructure, with Prime Minister Gabriel Attal emphasizing that "computational capacity is the foundation of AI leadership, and France is determined to build sovereign infrastructure that can support our ambitions in this critical domain." The initiative will provide grants covering up to 30% of eligible costs for projects that combine advanced AI capabilities with exceptional energy efficiency and French technology integration.

Cool Northern & Western France Climate Supporting Economiser-Driven Free Cooling

The moderate climate in northern and western France is driving the adoption of economizer-driven free cooling for AI data centers. These regions' favorable temperatures and low humidity allow operators to reduce energy consumption and operational costs by utilizing free cooling for a significant portion of the year. This advantage is particularly critical for high-density AI workloads, which generate substantial heat and require efficient cooling solutions.

In March 2025, Equinix published a case study on its PA8 International Business Exchange data center in Saint-Denis, revealing that the facility's advanced economizer system achieved free cooling for 275 days in 2024, reducing cooling energy consumption by 32% compared to the company's similar facilities in southern Europe. The case study highlighted that the system was particularly effective for the facility's high-density AI zones, with Senior Vice President of Global Operations Milind Wagle noting that "northern France's climate provides an ideal balance of favorable cooling conditions and proximity to major business centers, creating a sweet spot for efficient AI infrastructure.

Grid-Connection Bottlenecks in Île-de-France & Marseille Corridors
The limited capacity of power infrastructure in France's primary data center hubs is emerging as a critical challenge, hindering the growth of AI infrastructure despite strong demand and favorable energy economics. This challenge stems from both physical grid constraints and administrative delays, with connection requests in the Paris region now facing wait times of 18-36 months as Réseau de Transport d'Électricité (RTE) struggles to expand transmission capacity to meet escalating demand. The issue is further intensified by the power-intensive nature of AI workloads, which require 10-20 times more electricity than traditional applications, placing unprecedented pressure on grid infrastructure. The economic implications include project delays, opportunity costs from deferred developments, competitive disadvantages as other European markets progress faster, and strategic compromises as operators are forced to settle for less optimal locations to secure power availability.

In May 2025 Réseau de Transport d'Électricité (RTE) implemented a prioritization system for new data center grid connections in the Paris region, with CEO Xavier Piechaczyk acknowledging that "despite France's abundant generation capacity, we face significant challenges in delivering sufficient power to the Paris metro area fast enough to meet the extraordinary demands of AI infrastructure." The announcement revealed a backlog of connection requests totaling over 500 MW, with new applications now facing minimum wait times of 24 months regardless of project size or economic importance

Shortage of AI-Ready DC-Operations Talent Outside Major Hubs
The shortage of specialized talent required to design, build, and operate AI-optimized data centers is becoming a significant challenge across France, particularly in emerging secondary markets. This challenge arises from a complex talent gap spanning multiple disciplines: cooling engineers who understand the thermal requirements of GPU clusters; electrical engineers capable of designing power systems for high-density racks; and operations specialists who can manage the intricate interplay between AI software and physical infrastructure. The economic impact is considerable, with labor shortages adding 15-25% to project timelines and 10-15% to overall costs through premium compensation, while limiting the pace at which new AI capacity can be brought online. The geographic disparity exacerbates the issue, with the shortage most pronounced outside Paris, Lyon, and Marseille, reinforcing the concentration of facilities in established hubs despite the potential advantages of more distributed deployment patterns.

In March 2025, DATA4 Group reported in its quarterly earnings call that labor shortages had delayed the completion of its new Aix-en-Provence data center by seven months, with the facility now expected to open in Q4 2025 rather than Q1. CEO Olivier Micheli cited specific shortages in specialized cooling engineers and high-voltage electrical technicians as the primary bottlenecks, noting that the company had increased compensation for these roles by 35-40% and implemented an internal training academy to address the gaps.