US colo giants Digital Realty and Equinix are reportedly competing to acquire European data center firm atNorth.

In October, the FT reported that Swiss private equity investor Partners Group were looking to sell atNorth, and said to be seeking as much as €4bn ($4.6bn) from a sale.

Citing people familiar with the matter, this week Bloomberg reports that Digital Realty and a consortium of Equinix and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board are among the bidders entering the next round of bidding for atNorth. Partners Group is now said to be seeking a valuation of about €4.5 billion ($5.2bn) for the firm.

Nordic operator atNorth operates seven data centers across Sweden, Iceland, and Finland, with more in development in Finland, Denmark, and Sweden. On its website, the company said it is also evaluating sites in Norway.

Digital Realty and Equinix both have a major presence across Europe, but acquiring atNorth would give both companies footprints in multiple new markets.

Digital is present in Sweden (six facilities across Stockholm totaling 236,900 sq ft and 15MW) and Denmark (four facilities across Copenhagen totaling 251,500 sq ft and 10MW). Equinix has a footprint that includes Finland (five facilities in Helsinki) and Sweden (three across Stockholm).

Neither potential buyer has a data center in Iceland. Buying atNorth would also see Digital enter Finland, while Equinix would enter Denmark for the first time. Neither is currently present in Norway.

AtNorth was formed as Advania Data Centers in 2012 from three components: Skyrr, a public sector IT specialist in Iceland; Kerfi, a Swedish outfit with roots in a Nokia spin-off called Datapoint, and Hands from Norway. The company de-merged from the Advania Group in 2017 and rebranded to atNorth in 2020. Swiss investment manager Partners Group acquired the company in December 2021.

The firm recently sold its HPC-as-a-service unit Gompute, having acquired the business along with a data center in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 2023.