ELITE / INDUSTRY CONTEXT

Understand the landscape.
Follow the evidence.

Selected primary sources explain the market, policy and technical context around European and Italian data centre development. They provide background, not project-specific approvals or endorsements.

MARKET & DEMAND

The wider investment context.

Politecnico di Milano Osservatori

Italy’s data centre market

Politecnico di Milano’s January 2026 research distinguishes installed capacity, realised investment and the announced development pipeline.

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International Energy Agency

Energy and artificial intelligence

The International Energy Agency assesses global data centre electricity demand and the physical constraints on infrastructure growth.

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MIX Milan Internet Exchange

Milan’s interconnection ecosystem

MIX describes its role as an Internet exchange and part of the Milan network ecosystem.

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POLICY & INSTITUTIONS

A changing development framework.

Regione Lombardia

Lombardy’s data centre framework

Regional Law 11/2026 addresses data centre location, priorities, environmental considerations and planning coordination.

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Regione Lombardia

The regional single procedure

Regione Lombardia publishes the scope and documentation for covered data centre authorisation procedures.

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European Commission DG Energy

European data centre energy performance

The European Commission explains the reporting and energy-efficiency framework for data centres.

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European Commission

Cloud and AI Development Act

The Commission’s June 2026 proposal signals a policy direction for European cloud and AI infrastructure. It is identified here as a proposal.

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European Commission JRC

Technical best practices

The European Commission Joint Research Centre publishes data centre energy-efficiency best-practice guidance.

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Reading the context accurately.

Public institutions shape policy, regulation and programmes. They do not collectively provide a single approval for an individual facility. Regional and municipal planning, grid arrangements, environmental requirements and project-specific evidence remain distinct workstreams.

Industry associations and private certification bodies play different roles from public authorities. No membership, certification, public financing or institutional endorsement of ELITE is implied by these references.

Selected research reviewed in November 2026. Policies and programmes change; follow the original source for current details.

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