Power and Place – A Regulatory Guide to Data Centre Developments in Europe

Power and Place is our new guide to data centre regulation across Europe - published in July 2026 by the Best Friends: BonelliErede, Bredin Prat, De Brauw, Hengeler Mueller, Slaughter and May, and Uría Menéndez.

Timing matters: AI demand is exploding, but congested grids, tightening environmental rules, and diverging foreign-investment screening regimes are dictating where and when projects can actually get built. 

As joint group of law firms, we cover seven jurisdictions: France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the UK through a single comparative lens focused on grid access, power procurement, planning, sustainability, and site structuring. 

For investors, the core message is clear: the constraints that determine whether a project proceeds must be addressed together from day one, and early movers will hold the advantage. This is the strategic roadmap for deploying capital into Europe's fastest-growing infrastructure asset class.