The way for one of the largest Data Centers in Europe and perhaps the biggest investment ever made in Greece is being opened by the agreement of PPC with Amazon Web Services, whose first phase alone translates, according to Euro2day.gr information, into an investment on the order of 10 billion euros.
In reality, the group's binding memorandum of cooperation with one of the 5-6 “tech giants” worldwide, and above all the figures accompanying the deal, point to a giga scale project, capable of changing PPC's very business model, but above all of creating a technology ecosystem in Western Macedonia with an international character.
Both through the creation of thousands of new jobs via the attraction of businesses from abroad and partnerships in the startups sector, and because of the synergies that will be caused by the dynamic presence of the American giant's arm in the field of cloud computing, since Southeastern Europe does not have investments of such scale.
And this, as the first part of the deal, which was achieved after more than a year of discussions and exhaustive negotiations, paves the way for the development of an investment, with a capacity of 300 MW at the former lignite plant of Ag. Dimitrios in Kozani, which has a completion horizon of 2028, and constitutes by far the largest data center under construction in the wider region.
However, if the agreement is fully implemented and the two partners later decide on the construction of a mega AI campus, with more than triple the capacity, up to 1 GW, it will be one of the largest projects of its kind in Europe.
It is significant that according to the information, the binding memorandum gives AWS the right of an exclusive option to proceed with such a move, and also that within about six months from today, that is by March 2027, it must exercise it.
If it does and the agreement is expanded, then these will be triple figures, since as informed sources explain, it will be a technology project, with a total value of even more than 30 billion euros!
The amounts may be dizzying for those not familiar with the data center sector, however these are exactly the levels at which the value of the tens of thousands of graphics processing units (GPUs) included in very large-scale modern data centers moves, that is, the digital infrastructure that provides the required computing power for the training and operation of artificial intelligence applications.
There are many examples, the most recent being Google, which announced a few days ago that it will invest 13 billion euros to expand its data center facilities in Hamina, as well as in areas such as Kajaani, Muhos and Vaala.
Microsoft is investing 10 billion in the Sines data center in Portugal, while months ago AWS announced a 33.7 billion package for the Aragon region in Spain, where its base in Iberia is also located.
How the amounts are divided
To the question of what amounts each of the partners will pay, the answer is that the first part, namely the construction and energy shell (buildings, electrical installation, etc.), is undertaken entirely by PPC. The investment is estimated at around 1 billion euros.
The second part concerns the IT infrastructure, (Ethernet cabling, etc.), has an estimated amount of 1 billion and is undertaken by AWS.
As does the third part, namely the processing units (GPUs), which Amazon procures to a large extent from NVIDIA, which controls almost 80% of the global market. In the case of the initial phase of the project, with a capacity of 300 MW, their value is estimated at 10 billion euros, while if it is upgraded to 1 GW, it rises to 30 billion.
What are the 4 PPC - AWS agreements
On the other hand, the obligations of PPC (beyond construction) are summarized in four agreements in total.
- Long-term lease of the land and the building to Amazon
- Long-term supply of green energy to the American giant through a long-term contract (green PPA). The Greek group has a significant number of large photovoltaic parks in the area.
- Uninterrupted power supply 365 days a year, which is a prerequisite for a data center.
- And facility management, that is, the integrated management of the facility, which will also be carried out by PPC.
Although the binding MoU prohibits the disclosure of the amount of each of the above agreements, it is noted that the company is launching investments of 4-5 billion euros in Western Macedonia, a significant part of which will also serve the needs of the mega data center.
By 2028 the 300 MW ready, the 1 GW plugged in by 2031
How advanced the processes are is evident from the fact that the company has long since set in motion the first stages, namely the planning and licensing, with construction to begin during 2026, the installation to be placed within 2027 and the project to be plugged in in 2028.
The above dates, namely that PPC commits to having delivered the building to AMS by the end of 2028 and for it to receive it, are also included in the text of the agreement.
From that point on, provided the American giant exercises its right and the two parties agree for the investment to reach 1 GW, deliveries will be made gradually. Every year PPC will deliver 300 MW, which means that the full project will be plugged in by the end of 2031.
What the project means for Greece's position in Artificial Intelligence
Data centers are the physical infrastructure on which modern cloud and Artificial Intelligence services operate, as they house the servers, storage systems and networking equipment required for the processing, storage and transfer of data.
In the case of cloud data centers, businesses can make use of computing resources with greater flexibility and availability, while at the same time limiting investments in their own equipment and its maintenance cost.
The importance of computing power becomes even greater in the era of Artificial Intelligence, as models increase in size and complexity and their faster training requires ever greater computing power.
For AWS, these infrastructures are part of a global network which, according to the company, includes nearly 20 million kilometers of optical fiber, with the aim of faster data transfer, lower latency and better application performance.
In this light, the development of a large computing infrastructure in Greece acquires particular importance for the country's position in the new ecosystem of Artificial Intelligence.
With its implementation, the project will add large-scale computing infrastructure in Greece for the development of cloud and Artificial Intelligence services, strengthening the country's position on the global map of data centers. At the same time, it further strengthens Greece's role as a host country for critical technological infrastructures.
The who is who of AWS
It is among the leading cloud services providers worldwide, offering businesses a wide range of infrastructure and Artificial Intelligence solutions. In 2025 it had revenues of 129 billion dollars, that is 350 million dollars every day.
The company already maintains a presence in Greece, with one of the most recent additions to its domestic footprint being the Athens Local Zone, which entered operation in July 2026. The infrastructure brings cloud services closer to end users, allowing the storage and processing of workloads within the country and providing lower latency.
The footprint of the project in Western Macedonia is expected to be particularly significant, as during its construction it is estimated that thousands of jobs will be created, while a significant number will also be maintained during its operation.
At the same time, the needs of such a large infrastructure can lead to the development of a broader local ecosystem, attracting technical support and maintenance companies, providers of energy and telecommunications services, as well as startups active in cloud and Artificial Intelligence.
The cooperation between the two groups may, however, extend beyond the development of the data center. PPC and AWS intend to examine a multi-year cooperation in the fields of cloud and Artificial Intelligence, with the aim of supporting the digital transformation of the energy company.