Massive AI Data Center Left In The Dark Until 2030s As Tech Giant Walks Away

A tech giant backed out of a massive artificial intelligence data center project as its developer hunts for another power source.

Microsoft ended its plan to fund a supercomputer at Nscale’s roughly $2.7 billion AI data center in Loughton, England, which was set to be the largest in the U.K., the BBC reported Sunday. The pullback shows how power shortages are threatening data center build-out, as U.S. projects seeking to connect to PJM now take more than eight years on average to come online, according to Rocky Mountain Institute.

“We remain committed to our partnership with Nscale, including work to build robust digital infrastructure and support AI growth globally. This decision relates to a single site,” a Microsoft spokesperson said in a statement to the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Nscale was told the Loughton site will not get grid power until the 2030s, the Telegraph reported. The Nvidia-funded company markets itself as “the only full stack sovereign AI infrastructure provider in the UK,” according to a statement from Nscale CEO Josh Payne on the company’s website.

Nscale did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.

The supercomputer was set to hold more than 23,000 Nvidia chips arriving in early 2027, according to a Sept. 16, 2025, Nscale press release.

Microsoft announced the project the same day as part of a $30 billion investment in AI for the U.K. “Our ability to make an investment of this size is based in no small measure on the work the [British] Government is doing to reform planning, grow electricity capacity,” Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith wrote.

“We remain committed to both the Loughton project and the UK and we are exploring alternative power sources for the site, in addition to other expansion sites in the UK,” Nscale told the BBC. “Our relationship with Microsoft remains strong and long-term.”

The company added that its grid issue in London leaves its other deals untouched, as it continues partnerships in the U.S., Norway and Portugal with Microsoft, the BBC reported.

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