The UK government has designated North Lanarkshire, Scotland, as an AI Growth Zone, paving the way for 500MW of data center capacity to be built by Scottish operator DataVita.

According to the firm, the AI Growth Zone designation will unlock £8.2 billion ($11.3bn) in private sector investment in the region, near the city of Glasgow, including the data centers and 1GW of private wire renewable energy projects.

Set up by the government in January 2025, AI Growth Zones are areas where data center developments are encouraged through financial incentives and priority access to power. Alongside the AI Growth Zone, a £543 million ($748.8m) community fund will be formed to back projects in North Lanarkshire, with the cash to be delivered over 15 years.

North Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone: Details revealed

DataVita already operates a 24MW site, Fortis DV1, in the region, and says it will eventually supply 500MW of hyperscale capacity in the AI Growth Zone, though it has not put a timescale on this expansion.

Danny Quinn, managing director of DataVita, said: “Scotland has everything AI needs – the talent, the green energy, and now the infrastructure. But this goes beyond the physical build. We’re creating innovation parks, new energy infrastructure, and attracting inward investment from some of the world’s leading technology companies.

“This is a real opportunity for North Lanarkshire, and we want to make sure local people share in it.”

Though the company is touting 500MW for hyperscale use, the AI Growth Zone website lists a target of 250MW of hyperscale space, with a 40MW data center for use by research and innovation bodies, and 100MW for enterprise customers. DCD has contacted the firm for more information.

Built in 2021 by HFD Group, DataVita has operated its DV1 data center since 2016 and was the facility’s first occupier. The company took ownership of the facility from a syndicate of private investors in a 2021 deal with ‘£45m ($63.1m) of support’ from DataVita’s owner.

In January 2025, DataVita filed to expand the existing Fortis building with a new external plant building, and in November applied for permission to build a new data center at the site, referred to as DV3.

The company has a second facility in Glasgow, DV2, in the basement of 177 Bothwell Street. It offers 130 racks across 1,000 sqm (10,765 sq ft).

Last year, neocloud CoreWeave announced that it was deploying an unspecified number of Nvidia GPUs in DataVita data centers.

UK AI Growth Zones and the energy transition

The North Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone is the fifth to be set up since the scheme launched. Two are located in Wales, while one is in Oxfordshire and the other is based around Cobalt Park near Newcastle.

UK Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said: “Today’s announcement is about creating good jobs, backing innovation and making sure the benefits AI will bring can be felt across the community – that’s how the UK government is delivering real change for the people of Scotland.

“From thousands of new jobs and billions in investment through to support for local people and their families, AI Growth Zones are bringing generation-defining opportunity to all corners of the country.”

News of the new AI Growth Zone was welcomed by Matthew Baynes, VP for secure power and data centers at Schneider Electric, UK & Ireland.

But while Baynes said the AI Growth Zones have helped catalyze data center investment in the UK, he warned that there is still work to do around access to renewable power, describing the issue as “one of the biggest hurdles facing many parts of the country.”

Baynes said: “We believe there is a clear opportunity to catalyse both the AI and green transitions by turning data centers into the energy centres of the future – fast-tracking new developments with behind-the-meter power generation and microgrids.

“The AI Growth Zone announced today could not be more timely. We believe Scotland, with its cool temperate climate and rich conditions to generate renewable energy, provides a key opportunity to create secure, scalable, and sustainable infrastructure capable of galvanising the AI race. Now, the UK’s sustainability and AI ambitions must work together hand-in-glove, demonstrating that today’s technology can be a catalyst for a greener future, powered by AI.”