What regulatory frameworks are most influential in shaping your investment decisions?

Devika Shanker-Grandpierre,

Managing Partner and Founder, Shanker-Grandpierre Consulting

These are the key regulatory upcoming developments I am closely tracking and their potential implications for the data center sector:

1.Cloud and AI Development Act (EU, Proposed Q4 2025 – Q1 2026) Tripling EU data center capacity and establishing AI “gigafactories” creates first-mover opportunities in AI-ready infrastructure and premium tenant acquisition.

2. Data Center Energy Efficiency Package (EU, Planned Early 2026) EU-wide energy and sustainability benchmarks enable regulatory certainty and operational efficiency, enhancing asset value and market attractiveness.

3. Strategic Roadmap for Digitalisation and AI in the Energy Sector (EU, Expected 2026) Integration into the energy grid and optimized demand-side management reduces operational risk and accelerates project timelines.

4. Data Union Strategy (EU, Planned Q3 2025) Improved access to curated data and streamlined cross-border rules enhances AI development potential and EU digital sovereignty compliance.

5. AI Growth Zones Expansion (UK, 2026) Accelerates development of AI-enabled data centers with improved power access and planning support, facilitating high-performance computing infrastructure.

6. Streamlined Environmental Permitting Framework (UK, 2026) Simplified permitting accelerates project execution, reduces regulatory delays, and enhances competitiveness.

7. Clean Flexibility Roadmap (UK, 2026) Promotes flexible, sustainable energy integration, supporting net-zero goals and reliable operations.

8. Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA – Summer 2025, UK) Strategic grid planning reduces network constraints, lowers connection costs, and accelerates deployment timelines.

9. Cyber Security and Resilience Bill (UK, 2026) Strengthened cybersecurity regulations ensure compliance, protect operations, and enhance tenant confidences

Hossein Nouri,

Managing Director, Petro Power Construction

Several frameworks sit at the core of most investment committees:

Equator Principles: a benchmark for assessing a project's environmental and Social risks- project-finance eligibility.
EU Taxonomy and SFDR: standards that determine whether a project qualifies as a sustainable investment.
CSRD, EED (Recast 2023), and RED III: the main drivers of measurable sustainability reporting.
EU ETS expansion, the Net-Zero Industry Act, and Energy-Market Design reform: all reshaping project economics and long-term power-cost structures.
NIS2 Directive and the EU Cybersecurity Act: setting operational-compliance baselines for operators.
National planning codes: still critical for permitting speed and administrative risk.
Data-sovereignty rules such as GDPR, SecNumCloud (France), and C5 (Germany): guiding where capacity can legally sit and which clients it can serve.

Together, these frameworks define the perimeter of institutional capital. They serve as both gatekeepers and growth engines: alignment opens funding channels, misalignment closes them.

Grid connection and energy-market rules (capacity allocation, priority dispatch, curtailment regimes), data residency/privacy laws, and local planning/permitting regimes are the most consequential. EU-level initiatives (Net-Zero targets, Critical Infrastructure directives) plus national energy strategies that prioritise renewables or grid upgrades materially affect site selection. We also closely watch incentive schemes for industrial decarbonisation and local tax/land use policy changes.

James Lapushner,

CIO, Anacott Capital