OpenAI to set up Stargate AI data centre in Norway, eyes European expansion

OpenAI

OpenAI is making its European infrastructure debut with a massive AI data center in Norway under its Stargate initiative. Announced Thursday, the project is a 50-50 joint venture between UK-based Nscale and Norwegian energy firm Aker, with OpenAI as the “off-taker” — meaning it will lease computing capacity rather than operate the site itself.

Located in Kvandal near Narvik in northern Norway, the facility is expected to deploy 100,000 Nvidia GPUs by end-2026, with room for further expansion. In its initial 20-megawatt phase, Nscale and Aker are committing around $1 billion each. The site will be powered entirely by renewable energy and is targeting 230MW capacity overall, making it one of Europe’s largest AI data centers.

This marks a strategic European entry for OpenAI’s Stargate project, which originally launched in the U.S. with partners like Oracle, SoftBank, and UAE-based MGX. The group plans to invest up to $500 billion globally to scale AI infrastructure over the next four years.

Europe’s increasing emphasis on “sovereign AI” — the idea that critical data and AI workloads should stay within European borders — is prompting AI companies to localise compute. OpenAI’s move into Norway aligns with that trend, as does Nvidia’s push for localised infrastructure across Europe.

Earlier this year, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang urged European leaders to invest heavily in AI infrastructure. French startup Mistral, for instance, recently announced plans for a local data center using Nvidia GPUs.

With abundant hydropower and low electricity demand, Norway offers an ideal launchpad for OpenAI’s ambitions in the region. The Stargate Norway project signals a broader shift — AI firms aren’t just chasing performance anymore, they’re chasing strategic geography.