Lombardy’s 11 GW Data Center Pipeline Draws Milan Protests

By Elena Vasquez

More than 60 data center applications representing about 11 GW of proposed capacity have reached Lombardy since its data center law took effect in June. Il Giorno reported that thousands of people gathered in Milan in northern Italy last month to oppose new data center development.

The demonstration outside Milan City Hall in Piazza della Scala was organized by the National Network of Stop Data Center Committees, or Rete Nazionale dei Comitati STOP Data Center. Representatives of 40 civic committees gathered to oppose the expansion of energy-intensive infrastructure in Lombardy.

The committees asked the national and regional governments to halt authorizations for new data centers. They also called for a national strategy to assess proposed projects and their impact, alongside a review of the regional law.

What do the figures show?

• More than 60 applications have reached Lombardy since June.
• Their combined proposed capacity is about 11 GW, or 11,000 MW.
• Lombardy has 67 active data centers, one-third of Italy’s total.
• Milan province contains 60% of authorization requests, in municipalities represented by committees at the protest.

The regional law is Italy’s first law addressing data center development. Protesters say it lacks sufficient force to stop rapid expansion, a criticism made while the proposed pipeline has reached 11 GW.

Applications do not equal operating capacity. For developers, the 11 GW figure marks the scale submitted for authorization, not a forecast of commissioned load.

Mario Fritella, spokesperson for the No Data Center Network and the Rhodense Committee, said: “We are concerned about the proliferation of data centers in our areas. These facilities impoverish our municipalities by consuming huge amounts of water and energy, eroding land, and putting our health at risk by contributing to rising temperatures.”

Fritella also said the regional law “trades land and our health for money.” He added that data centers can open on agricultural land if the applicant is willing to pay double, calling the lack of a national law “absurd.”

What changes for developers?

Regional Councilor Massimo Sertori said in October that the law would be tightened within a month. The announcement came after more than 60 applications arrived, with 60% of authorization requests located in Milan province.

For developers, the key distinction is between proposals and approvals. A tighter law could affect project scope, timelines or authorization terms, although the report gave no details on proposed amendments.

Projects also face local political resistance. Fritella said facilities consume large volumes of water and energy, erode land and contribute to rising temperatures. The committees’ proposed national strategy would place project approvals and their effects under a common review framework.

How broad is the opposition?

The Stop Dirty Data Centres campaign group planned two days of protests across wider Europe. Last week, more than 100 protesters linked to activist group Geef Tegengas broke into a Microsoft data center construction site in Amsterdam.

The Milan demonstration and the Amsterdam breach connect local permitting disputes to a broader campaign against data center expansion. For operators, that increases pressure on permitting schedules and community acceptance, even as Italy considers tighter regional rules.

Next year’s DCN Milan event will bring together executives and experts from the region to examine the data center market in Italy and Southern Europe. The nearer test for operators is whether Lombardy’s promised tightening changes the authorization path for a pipeline exceeding 60 applications.