Plans for a solar-powered data center south of Bordeaux, France, have reportedly been abandoned.

Part of the project "Horizeo," the data center is no longer being developed at the solar power site which has been getting increasingly cut back on over the last few years.

The project's backers, energy companies Engie and Neoen, have decided to pull the plug according to a report from DCMag.

First announced in 2021, Horizeo was planned to be a 1GW solar panel park featuring an on-site data center, electricity storage batteries, and a hydrogen electrolyzer.

However, according to recent permits submitted for government authorization, the latter elements have since been dropped.

Concerns about the project, located in the Saucats, have been raised due to the large amount of forest land that would need to be cleared.

The original plans were for 2,000 hectares of land, 1,000 of which would be dedicated to solar panels. That has since been reduced to 680 hectares, with 800 for forestry, 450 for "protected species on the site" and eight for “agrivoltaic” market gardening.

Olivier Rémy, director of Horizeo, confirmed the submission of applications for building permits and environmental authorization, a few days before the implementation of the "acceleration of renewable energies" law which will prohibit the construction of photovoltaic parks larger than 25 hectares in forest areas.

The project is being led by a consortium including Engie, NeoEN, RTE, and Banque des Territoires. It is expected to cost around €600 million ($652m).

Both Engie and Neoen are energy providers, with the latter specifically focused on renewable energy. Neoen currently has a capacity of around 8GW, set to expand to 10GW by the end of 2025.