Data centre sites in Italy: from grid request to usable capacity

As of 21 August 2026, according to figures reported by Il Sole 24 Ore, there were 531 data centre connection applications to Terna’s grid, totalling 95.38 GW. Only 15 of them, for 1.88 GW, had reached the most advanced stage. The gap between those two numbers says most of what matters: a connection request is the start of a process, not available power.

Who handles the connection

In Italy the high and extra-high voltage transmission grid is run by Terna; medium and low voltage distribution by E-Distribuzione and other local distributors. According to Slaughter and May’s guide, Terna’s Grid Code applies to consumption units of 10 MVA and above, while smaller data centres connect under the relevant distributor’s technical rules. The same guide notes that the Grid Code currently provides no fast track for data centres.

The stages

1. A connection request to the competent grid operator.
2. STMG (soluzione tecnica minima generale), the general technical solution: the operator sets out the connection solution and the fees. The applicant must accept it.
3. Where works on the transmission grid are needed, the applicant requests and pays for a design offer, then starts permitting for the data centre and its own connection works, while Terna handles permitting for the grid works.
4. STMD (soluzione tecnica minima di dettaglio), the detailed technical solution: issued after permitting, it fixes the connection works and costs.
5. Connection agreement, construction, energisation.

Each stage carries its own timing and conditions. A site can sit anywhere in this sequence, and its value moves accordingly.

Three levels not to confuse

• Requested power: the project’s requirement, or the power stated in the application. On its own it says nothing about whether or when it will be available.
• Documented connection terms: what the operator’s documents show, from an accepted STMG to a connection agreement, with works, costs and timing.
• Usable capacity: the power a project can rely on, with works completed and supply conditions defined. Power at the grid intake and power available to IT equipment must also be distinguished.

What to ask whoever proposes a site

• Municipality and, if available, cadastral references.
• Site area and shape.
• Current land use and any route to a variant.
• Connection status and the documents that evidence it: application, STMG, acceptance, agreement.
• Distance to a primary substation or high-voltage line, if known.
• Land control: ownership, option or other title.
• Price expectations and timing.

No confidential documents are needed at first contact: it is enough to know which ones exist.

How value is read

This is why we price a site in euros per MW, always stating which stage the figure refers to and what evidence supports it: a requested MW, a MW with an accepted connection offer and a contracted MW are not worth the same. Euros per hectare remain a check against the local land market. Region matters less than infrastructure: power, timing, planning, fibre.

MC21’s role

MC21 finds and screens land, reads the available documents on connection, planning and land control, and presents the site to developers, operators and infrastructure funds at the stage at which each engages. Electrical, planning and legal checks remain with the professionals the parties appoint.