German hosting firm Hetzner Online is looking to build a data center in Gunzenhausen, southern Germany
According to NordBayern, Hetzner is aiming to purchase 50 hectares of agricultural land next to the Scheupeleinsmühle industrial park in the Bavarian city, to the south of Nuremberg and east of Stuttgart.
The company intends to build a solar park and data center on the site; solar panels would take up 35 hectares (350,000 square meters/3.8 million sq ft) of the site. The rest of the site – up to 15 hectares (150,000 sq m/1.6 million sq ft) – would be used for data center buildings
Last month Mayor Karl-Heinz Fitz invited all 23 local owners on the proposed site to inform them of the plans, with some reportedly saying "they definitely don't want to sell."
Hetzner Online is reportedly offering to pay "Farmland plus x" for the land, estimated at 5 to 7 euros per square meter.
“When looking for suitable space, Hetzner Online GmbH is in contact with the city of Gunzenhausen,” Mayor Fitz’s office told NordBayern. “Talks have since started with the property owners. Mayor Fitz would be very pleased if the project were given a chance with the planned generation of energy from a photovoltaic system. This would further advance the city of Gunzenhausen.”
Hetzner told the publication it was looking for "another location close to the headquarters in Gunzenhausen for a possible new location, 1/3 of which is to be used for data center space and 2/3 for the generation of regenerative solar power, an area of 50 hectares is being sought.”
“We are all Gunzenhäuser and would be happy if it worked out here. We are still in the early stages and want to see whether there is an opportunity to acquire the necessary land.”
Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Gunzenhausen, Hetzner offers cloud, web hosting, and colocation services. The company operates two campuses in Germany in Nuremberg and Falkenstein. The Falkenstein campus comprises 13 buildings over a 100,000 sqm (1 million sq ft) site. The company also has a campus in Tuusula, Finland which was expanded up to 6MW in December 2020. Two more buildings are in development on the site.
