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Data Center CAPEX & Construction Cost Benchmark

Compare conventional, modular and AI-ready development costs on a consistent boundary before setting an investment budget

Commissioned edition · scope and delivery agreed before invoicing

Decision and outcome

Build a comparable data center development budget and identify which cost differences are caused by geography, design, phasing or exclusions

A sourced construction cost comparison, separate development-cost additions and explicit sensitivities for conventional and high-density projects

Geography

Selected European markets and US comparators, confirmed before invoicing

Evidence date

Cost reference date and currency conversion basis agreed at commissioning

Capacity basis

EUR per MW IT at a stated design and cost boundary; land, utility works, fees and active IT treated separately

3-page research sample

Page 1 explains the decision, scope and commercial deliverables. Page 2 sets out the methodology, evidence and normalisation rules. Page 3 provides a limited illustrative output, worked example or reading framework, with its limitations and the request action. It is not the full report

Page 1 of 3

3-page research sample · page 1 of 3 · 4 October 2026

Data Center CAPEX & Construction Cost Benchmark

Build a comparable data center development budget and identify which cost differences are caused by geography, design, phasing or exclusions

The decision this research supports

A sourced construction cost comparison, separate development-cost additions and explicit sensitivities for conventional and high-density projects

Scope

  • Selected European markets and US comparators, confirmed before invoicing
  • Cost reference date and currency conversion basis agreed at commissioning
  • EUR per MW IT at a stated design and cost boundary; land, utility works, fees and active IT treated separately

What the paid edition delivers

  • Market construction-cost comparison with source dates
  • Cost boundary and inclusion/exclusion matrix
  • Separate total-development-cost bridge
  • Design, scale and cooling sensitivities

These three opening pages explain the scope, method and a limited example. The commissioned commercial report is completed to the agreed scope; its detailed findings are not published here.

3-page research sample, not the full report

Chapter outline

  1. 1. Cost boundary and comparability

    • IT load, design assumptions, phasing and source period

  2. 2. Market construction-cost comparison

    • Labour, equipment, logistics and contractor constraints

  3. 3. Conventional, modular and high-density options

    • Evidence-backed comparators and explicit exclusions

  4. 4. Development-cost additions

    • Land, grid, site works, fees and contingency

  5. 5. Project sensitivities

    • Scale, redundancy, density, cooling and delivery programme

  6. 6. Cost evidence register

    • Published benchmarks versus actual project quotations

Included deliverables

  • Market construction-cost comparison with source dates
  • Cost boundary and inclusion/exclusion matrix
  • Separate total-development-cost bridge
  • Design, scale and cooling sensitivities
  • Budget challenge questionnaire for project teams

Limits

  • Published benchmarks are not binding contractor quotations
  • Construction CAPEX and total development CAPEX are different boundaries
  • GPU and active IT procurement is excluded unless separately agreed
  • Modular savings or AI premiums are not assumed without comparable evidence

Edition and licence

Commissioned edition · scope and delivery agreed before invoicing

Single edition. Named-user licence for internal use within the purchasing company. Redistribution, resale and publication are not permitted. Separate from any PowerlandMap subscription.

Delivery

Available on request. The complete study is provided only after payment has been received. Scope, price and delivery date are confirmed before invoicing. The commissioned research is prepared to the agreed scope and delivered privately on the agreed schedule after payment confirmation.

Request this study

Data Center CAPEX & Construction Cost Benchmark. This form starts a quotation: we confirm scope, delivery date and price before invoicing. It does not take a payment or grant access; the complete study is provided only after payment has been received

Request a quotation and delivery schedule. Sending a request does not place an order or grant access to the full study.