US to capture two-thirds of global data centre expansion

Global data centre supply is forecast to increase by 33GW between 2026 and 2027, lifting total worldwide capacity to
approximately 93GW. However, this expansion is heavily concentrated in North America, which is expected to add 21GW
of new capacity, equivalent to an annual growth of 28%. By comparison, EMEA and Asia Pacific are forecast to add a
combined 11.5GW over the same period, underscoring the growing imbalance in where digital infrastructure can
realistically be delivered.
The contrast is most visible at the market level. Ashburn, Virginia, the world’s largest data centre cluster, is forecast to add
1.6GW of new supply in 2026 alone, roughly equivalent to the entire existing capacity of the London market. The scale and
speed of US deployment is increasingly difficult for other regions to match.
The divergence reflects a structural constraint rather than a lack of capital. In EMEA alone, the data centre sector requires
an estimated £422 billion in development capital to fund its long-term pipeline. Yet the ability to convert that investment into
operational capacity is increasingly restricted by slow planning processes, political resistance and limited access to power.

In contrast, the US continues to benefit from faster permitting, deeper capital markets and more scalable energy
infrastructure. The result is an increasingly acute supply shortage in Europe’s core hubs. Live colocation vacancy across
EMEA has fallen to 9.5%, dropping to 2.9% for large-scale requirements. In Frankfurt, availability has declined to 0.6%,
while Dublin stands at 1.3%.
Scarcity is also driving record levels of pre-leasing. In Dublin, 94.8% of the development pipeline has already been
committed, while London and Milan have pre-let 87.8% and 92.6% of their upcoming capacity respectively, often well
before construction is completed.

Stephen Beard, Head of Global Data Centres at Knight Frank, said: “Global data centre growth is entering a phase
where access to power has become the decisive constraint. The US is pulling ahead because it can deliver megawatts at
scale and at speed. Europe and parts of Asia are not short of capital or demand, but without faster planning and a clearer
approach to energy infrastructure, supply will continue to lag. The risk is that grid capacity, rather than innovation, becomes
the limiting factor for digital competitiveness.”

Despite these constraints, the global footprint of large-scale data centre markets continues to expand. By the end of 2027,
Silicon Valley, San Antonio, Frankfurt, Johor and Sydney are all expected to exceed 1GW of built IT capacity, joining the
group of established gigawatt-scale hubs. The UAE is also forecast to pass the 1GW threshold at a national level, reflecting
rising state-backed investment in compute capacity.
As AI workloads become significantly more energy intensive than traditional cloud computing, competition for sites with
secure power access is intensifying. Knight Frank concludes that whether the current infrastructure boom delivers balanced
global growth, or further entrenches a US-centric digital economy, will depend on how quickly governments address energy
supply and planning constraints.