A data center announced for a suburb of Warsaw in central Poland has sparked protests from residents.

Developed by Sien Real, a joint venture formed by the Polish construction firm Budimex and the Spanish infrastructure operator Ferrovial, the facility will house four buildings on a 487,660 sq ft (45,305 sqm) plot on the border between the towns of Piaseczno and Józefosław. Construction is expected to begin in 2027.

No information has been made available about the site’s compute capacity. However, Budimex confirmed to Gazeta Wyborcza that the site’s water usage is expected to be equivalent to that of a housing estate of up to 3,000 people, sparking concerns among locals that it will exacerbate existing shortages in the municipality.

DCD has approached Budimex and Ferrovial for comment.

Budimex spokesperson Marcin Graczyk also told Gazeta Wyborcza that the data center would incorporate features to mitigate water consumption, noise, and dust emissions. “Technical installations, including cooling and emergency power systems, will meet the highest standards for modern data centers,” said Graczyk. “We are paying particular attention to minimizing the investment's impact on local residents.”

The data center originally received planning permission from the local authorities in 2024. An environmental impact assessment from the time states that the facility would contain four 320 m³ diesel tanks and 49 power generators with a maximum output of 2,420kW, suggesting the site's overall generator capacity will total around 118MW.

Its water needs, meanwhile, would be met by the local network operator. An additional 1,102.33 m³ retention reservoir will also be built to store excess rainwater and meltwater, the contents of which will be discharged into the local sewer system or used to water the site’s landscaped areas.

Several residents have since expressed concerns that the project will exacerbate water shortages in the nearby commuter town of Józefosław. Earlier this year, locals complained that the water pressure in the town dropped to low levels every evening, preventing them from using baths, sinks, and dishwashers. A petition was later organized by residents demanding a review of network capacity in light of new housing estates being developed in the area.

Warsaw constitutes Poland’s largest data center market, with 45 facilities listed in and around the city by DataCenterMap.

New projects announced for the area include a 10MW facility launched by data center operator Data4 in April and a 130MW site by property developer Hillwood in December.

Learn more about the data center market in Poland and Eastern Europe, and meet with other executives and experts from the region at the DCN Warsaw event later this year.