Fluidstack Abandons $11B France AI Data Center Projects, Pivoting to US expansion
Fluidstack has reportedly withdrawn from two high-profile AI data center projects in France, including a planned €10 billion facility, as it shifts its focus toward the U.S. following several larger contract wins.
According to a Bloomberg report on Wednesday, the London-founded “neocloud” provider no longer intends to develop a proposed one-gigawatt AI data center in Bosquel in northern France, a project previously selected by local authorities as part of the country’s push to scale domestic AI infrastructure. Authorities have since reopened the site to alternative bidders, though no replacement developer has been chosen.
Fluidstack has also exited a second project south of Paris tied to French AI firm Mistral and data center developer Eclairion, Bloomberg reported.
The pullback marks a shift for a company that had been positioned as a centerpiece of France’s AI ambitions. The Bosquel project was highlighted by President Emmanuel Macron as part of a broader €109 billion national AI investment initiative unveiled last year, aimed at strengthening the country’s competitiveness against the US and China.
Fluidstack’s retreat underscores a broader imbalance in where AI infrastructure is being deployed, with capital and large-scale contracts increasingly concentrated in the US. The company has been redirecting resources toward the U.S. market, where it recently announced a $50 billion agreement with Anthropic to build custom AI data centers in New York and Texas. It is also partnering with Cipher Digital (NASDAQ: CIFR) and TeraWulf (NASDAQ: WULF) on additional US-based AI compute facilities backed by Google. Fluidstack was also reportedly in discussions to raise about $700 million at a valuation of roughly $7 billion.
The developments highlight growing execution risks behind Europe’s ambitious AI infrastructure plans. While governments, including France, have pledged billions of euros to support data center construction, some large-scale announcements have yet to materialize as developers prioritize markets offering faster access to power, capital and customer demand.
The Bosquel site had been designated by French grid operator RTE as a priority location for expedited power connections—an increasingly critical factor for gigawatt-scale AI facilities. However, access to power and the ability to secure long-term customer contracts remain key bottlenecks across Europe.
