IREN Gains Civil Works Approval for 300 MW Badajoz AI Data Center Campus in Spain and Establishes European Subsidiary

The Spanish city of Badajoz will host the first European data center project of IREN Europe, the newly established holding company for the continent-wide operations of IREN (NASDAQ: IREN).

At NVIDIA GTC Berlin on Oct. 21, 2026, the company confirmed it has obtained the civil works license for the planned AI data center campus, which is designed to deliver approximately 300 MW of capacity, with initial operations targeted for 2028.

First European Project Anchored on Grid-Connected Power

At Badajoz, IREN has secured grid-connected power alongside the civil works license for the planned campus. The company states it remains in close consultation with local, regional and national authorities as the project advances.

The site is designed around closed-loop liquid cooling, an approach the company says requires minimal water for cooling. The campus is also designed for compatibility with the NVIDIA DSX AI Factory Platform.

Leadership Appointments for the European Venture

In parallel with the Badajoz announcement, IREN has put in place a European leadership structure.

Ángel Corcóstegui has been named Chair of the newly established board of directors of IREN Europe, the holding company for the group's European operations, while Roberto Purcaro has been appointed Executive Director for Europe and joins the board. Corcóstegui's background spans banking and infrastructure.

He served as First Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Banco Santander, overseeing the integration of Banco Santander and Banco Central Hispano, and co-founded Magnum Capital, a private equity firm focused on Spain and Portugal. His infrastructure and energy track record includes chairing the engineering group Eptisa, Magnum Capital's control of the Portuguese wind operator Iberwind from 2008 to 2015, and a current seat as an independent director of Moeve.

"Spain has exceptional conditions to become a European hub for AI digital infrastructure, thanks to its excellent connectivity and abundant, competitive renewable energy," said Corcóstegui. "It is an honor to chair IREN Europe, and I look forward to helping execute our growth plans." Purcaro brings more than 25 years of international experience in infrastructure, energy transition, and digital infrastructure.

He most recently served as Global Head of Complex Opportunities and Head of Italy at Macquarie Capital, where he led the structuring of large-scale transactions involving multinational corporations, sovereign institutions, and global investors. "Badajoz is where IREN Europe begins," said Purcaro. "IREN develops its own sites and operates them directly, and that's how we'll work in Europe. Our focus from here is the campus and the customers who'll use it."

Entry Through Nostrum Group Acquisition

IREN first established a presence in Europe in June 2026 through the acquisition of Nostrum Group, a Spain-based data center developer, along with its team of more than 60 people. That team is led by Gabriel Nebreda, Chief Executive Officer of IREN Spain.

Sovereign AI Positioning and Customer Choice

The company frames the Badajoz development as a contribution to Europe's sovereign AI ambitions, positioning itself to serve customers seeking greater choice over where their AI workloads run and how their data and infrastructure are managed on the continent.

"At NVIDIA GTC Berlin, we're laying out our plans for Europe. For customers in Europe, sovereign AI starts with two questions: where their data sits and who's running the infrastructure," said Daniel Roberts, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of IREN. "That's what IREN Europe is for: our own sites, run by our own people, with a board that's accountable in Europe. Ángel and Roberto have spent their careers building and financing infrastructure globally and in Iberia, and Badajoz is the first project in Europe."

IREN intends to offer AI cloud services from Badajoz, including managed services, aimed at customers with data residency and operational requirements in Europe.

Software Capabilities Supporting the European Offering

The European build-out is backed by IREN's software portfolio. Following the completion of its acquisition of Mirantis, IREN's software, including k0rdent AI, can provision and manage AI infrastructure. These capabilities include workload isolation and operational controls that the company says can help customers meet data residency, security, and governance requirements.

k0rdent AI also integrates NVIDIA technologies, including NVIDIA Infra Controller (NICo) and NVIDIA Run:ai, into a unified platform. IREN plans to offer these capabilities alongside its European capacity as it comes online.

Context Within a Global Footprint

The Badajoz project sits within IREN's announced portfolio of more than 5 GW of grid-connected power across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, a footprint the company says positions it to serve customers with differing data residency requirements in each region.

IREN describes itself as a vertically integrated AI Cloud platform, delivering data centers, compute, and software for AI training and inference, underpinned by land- and grid-connected power in renewable-rich regions across its three operating geographies.

According to the company, the Badajoz announcement made at NVIDIA GTC Berlin represents the first European project for the newly formed IREN Europe and provides the foundation for its European AI Cloud capacity, with initial operations at the Spanish campus targeted for 2028.