The Belgian data center market is becoming more mature every year, notes BDIA in its annual report. Demand for more AI and investments from hyperscalers are likely to further accelerate the growth spurt in the coming years.

BDIA, the umbrella organization of Belgian digital infrastructure, is investigating this State of Belgian data centersFor the second year in a row, we report on how the market in our country has risen. The focus is primarily on data centers that are used to host colocation services. This segment will be further professionalized and consolidated in 2023, although corporate data centers remain the most common type in Belgium.

The total area of ​​all Belgian colocation data centers is 107,700 square meters, an increase of seven percent compared to 2022. If you subtract office space etc., 56,200 m2 remains.² for example: That’s ten percent more compared to next year. Total IT power output rose by nine percent to 93 MW.

The fewer souls, the more joy

Notably, this increase in capacity comes with fewer data center facilities (from 44 to 43) and fewer operators (from 27 to 23). The disappearance of Foneo from the market and the acquisition of smaller, local providers by Datacenter United and NRB led to a smaller number of operators. The four “big” operators on the Belgian market – Proximus, Digital Realty, Datacenter United and LCL – have 75 percent of the total IT capacity.

The proportions will probably be mixed up again next year. Proximus has put its data centers up for sale and with Kevlinx, EdgeConnex and especially Microsoft, some big players are ready to enter the market. Microsoft also wants to open its data center region in Brussels, which is expected to be operational from next year, to colocation services.

Brussels remains popular

The software giant from Redmond is far from the only one wanting to build a data center in Brussels. The capital remains a hotspot for data centers: 60 percent of capacity is in or around Brussels. 22 percent are effectively in Brussels territory, many operators also opt for peripheral municipalities such as Zaventem and Diegem, making the province of Flemish Brabant the busiest province. The data centers in and around Brussels have a greater national or even international reach than data centers in the other provinces, which often host SMEs from the region.

The discrepancy between Flanders and Wallonia. 23 percent of the colocation capacity is on Flemish land, and if the peripheral municipalities of Brussels are included, this figure rises to seventy percent. Wallonia has to be content with just seven percent. With Google’s data centers in Saint-Ghislain alone accounting for a quarter of Belgium’s data center capacity, Wallonia has a unique advantage that Flanders and Brussels will undoubtedly be jealous of.

AI provides a new growth spurt

All signs point to the Belgian data center market having a bright future. Belgium is gradually becoming a leading market in the European data center landscape. Demand for AI and further investments from Microsoft and Google will spur infrastructure growth. BDIA forecasts annual average growth of 12 percent in data center capacity and 18.5 percent in IT performance through 2028.

This is also positive for the labor market: in order to achieve this growth, twelve to thirteen percent additional people are hired every year. On the other hand, this growth has a negative impact on jobs in corporate data centers, which are increasingly becoming redundant.