Greece’s Copelouzos Group has signed agreements with two Abu Dhabi technology companies to explore AI and data-centre infrastructure development. The initiative comes as access to available electricity, grid connection rights and digital infrastructure become increasingly linked in a new investment market. Greece’s Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO) has reported more than 12 GW of data-centre connection applications.
The total exceeds earlier industry estimates and signals the scale of potential electricity demand seeking access to Greece’s transmission system. It does not represent committed investment or actual electricity consumption. IPTO has said it cannot yet reliably distinguish mature projects from preliminary proposals.
The international partnership and expanding connection queue point to a shift in Southeast Europe’s electricity business. Energy companies are moving beyond power supply towards roles as developers, shareholders and infrastructure partners in the AI economy.
Copelouzos explores AI and data-centre development with G42 companies
Signed on October 22, the agreements are with Khazna Data Centers and Core42, both part of the G42 technology group. The companies will explore combining Khazna’s experience developing physical data-centre facilities with Core42’s cloud infrastructure and AI computing capabilities. Their discussions include a potential AI factory in Greece.
The investment’s scope, ownership structure and implementation timetable have yet to be determined. A large, expandable facility in the Attica region has been reported as a possible first development, but neither a final location nor installed capacity has been confirmed. The agreements do not amount to final investment commitments.
For Copelouzos, the initiative would extend beyond diversification into another infrastructure sector. The group has experience developing energy projects, obtaining infrastructure approvals and structuring large investments with international counterparties. These capabilities are relevant to data centres, where securing electricity capacity can be as challenging as obtaining land or financing.
A conventional electricity supplier earns revenue by delivering energy. A data-centre infrastructure investor could derive value from several activities, including land development, grid-access preparation, electrical infrastructure, facility ownership and long-term capacity leasing. The investment proposition may combine contracted infrastructure cash flows with exposure to growing demand for computing power.
Those revenues would depend on securing customers, allocating project risks and completing development. The signed memoranda do not guarantee those outcomes and are not final investment commitments.
Connection applications exceed 12 GW as Greece considers new requirements
IPTO deputy chairman Ioannis Margaris said at an Athens energy conference on October 22 that data-centre connection applications had topped 12 GW. Earlier reporting in October put the queue at approximately 9 GW, compared with almost 5 GW in June. The increase reflects an expanding development pipeline, but does not equate to operational demand.
A connection application indicates interest in securing electricity capacity; it does not establish that a project has financing, building permits, technology contracts or long-term computing customers. That distinction is becoming important to electricity infrastructure planning. If capacity is reserved for projects that cannot realistically proceed, more advanced investments could face longer development periods and higher costs.
Greece is examining changes to the allocation of data-centre connection rights. A draft regulatory framework would impose stricter financial and technical requirements, including a proposed €200,000 per MW connection guarantee. Developers would also be responsible for grid infrastructure costs attributable to their projects.
Under the proposed guarantee, a 100 MW application would require €20 million if the rule takes effect in its current form. The draft also proposes that data centres obtain at least 60% of their annual electricity consumption from renewable sources. The proposed requirements are not yet binding.
The legislation remains under consultation, which is scheduled to close on October 24. The proposals would treat access to scarce transmission capacity as a commitment requiring credible financial backing, rather than solely as an administrative application.
Data-centre projects bring different financing risks
Financing data centres involves risks that differ from those of conventional renewable electricity projects. For a utility-scale renewable development, lenders typically assess construction, generation forecasts, electricity revenues, grid access and operational performance. Data centres add exposure to computing demand, technological change, cooling infrastructure, electrical redundancy and customer concentration.
Financing may also depend on the creditworthiness of cloud companies, AI service providers or long-term facility tenants. A key investment milestone could be securing both a credible computing customer and a bankable electricity connection. Connection rights alone are unlikely to support substantial project debt without evidence that construction can be completed and the facility commercially occupied.
A project with secured grid capacity, completed electrical engineering, environmental approvals and long-term customer commitments could be valued materially differently from a speculative development. Energy developers could take on an early-stage infrastructure sponsor role, preparing assets for institutional capital.
Power procurement and efficiency enter initial project design
The proposed Greek framework would make electricity procurement part of the initial investment structure, rather than a later operating decision. A renewable electricity requirement alongside tighter grid-access conditions would require developers to consider generation availability, consumption profiles, cooling needs and potential flexibility obligations. Demand that responds to operating conditions could benefit the electricity system where suitable commercial agreements and technical arrangements are in place.
Some computing workloads may be scheduled or transferred more flexibly than others. Critical workloads that require continuous operation cannot simply be interrupted when the electricity system is constrained. This difference will influence contract design among data-centre operators, electricity suppliers and system operators.
European energy-efficiency requirements are also developing. The European Commission (EC) is preparing potential minimum performance standards for data centres, with a legislative proposal planned for 2027. Energy performance, water consumption, cooling efficiency and recoverable waste heat are becoming relevant to asset valuation and long-term operating expenditure.
Regional competition centres on reliable capacity and project delivery
The Greek developments are relevant to Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro, although the countries should not be assumed to face the same immediate level of demand. Competition for AI infrastructure will increasingly depend on electricity reliability, available grid capacity, telecommunications connectivity, permitting efficiency and the ability to structure major investments.
Serbia’s industrial infrastructure and regional telecommunications connections could support selected projects. Romania and Bulgaria offer access to the EU electricity and digital-services markets. Montenegro’s potential would depend on identifying a commercially credible niche, given the smaller scale of its electricity system and infrastructure.
The competition may not be determined by which country offers the lowest wholesale electricity price. It may instead turn on which jurisdiction can provide bankable electrical infrastructure, dependable capacity and sufficient development certainty within international technology investors’ required timelines.
The Copelouzos initiative is an early example of energy-sector expertise being applied to another revenue market. The immediate investment opportunity is not the full 12 GW application queue, but the smaller group of projects able to turn requested electricity capacity into financed, contracted and operational digital infrastructure. The information was checked against IPTO’s October 22 conference disclosure, the Copelouzos–G42 announcement and Greece’s October data-centre regulatory proposals.