Google picks Finland for its largest single investment in Europe

Google will buy up to half the electricity produced by one of Finland's nuclear power plants as part of a record €13bn (£11bn; $15bn) investment in the country's AI infrastructure, the company announced.

The US tech giant said the package would fund three new data centres, expand an existing site and support energy projects to power growing demand for AI services.

"This is Google's largest single investment in Europe and a testament to Finland's leadership in responsibly building AI infrastructure," the company said on Wednesday.

"Google's decision is a clear testament to our strengths," Finland's Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said in a statement.

As part of the deal, Google signed a 22-year contract with Finnish utility Fortum to buy up to 50% of the output from the Loviisa nuclear power plant.

Earlier this week, TikTok announced a $1bn investment in Finland to build a new data centre in Kouvola, pointing to the country's "strong digital infrastructure, clean energy mix, robust data governance and skilled tech talent".

Finland has emerged as an attractive location for data centres because of its cool climate, plentiful low-carbon electricity and relatively uncongested power grid. The colder temperatures can reduce the energy needed to cool facilities packed with computer servers.

Technology companies are racing to secure power supplies as the AI boom drives demand for vast networks of data centres.