Each jurisdiction must identify, secure, and activate sovereign datacenter capacity within the first 2-4 weeks of mobilisation. This document outlines existing government facilities, commercial options, and emergency provisioning approaches per jurisdiction.
Estimated Capacity Requirements
| Jurisdiction | Compute (cores) | Storage (PB) | Rack Space | Power (MW) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 50,000-100,000 | 20-50 PB | 500-1,000 racks | 15-30 MW |
| European Union | 300,000-500,000 | 100-200 PB | 3,000-5,000 racks | 80-150 MW |
| Canada | 40,000-80,000 | 15-40 PB | 400-800 racks | 12-25 MW |
| Australia | 30,000-60,000 | 10-30 PB | 300-600 racks | 10-20 MW |
| TOTAL | 420,000-740,000 | 145-320 PB | 4,200-7,400 racks | 117-225 MW |
United Kingdom
Government-Owned Facilities
Crown Hosting Data Centres
- Locations: Corsham (Wiltshire), Farnborough (Hampshire)
- Security: Certified up to SECRET, some TS capability
- Current capacity: ~200-400 racks available for expansion
- Power: ~10-15 MW available capacity
- Status: ACTIVE - Immediate availability
Immediate Action Required
Crown Hosting contract allows rapid provisioning. Week 1 action: Formal capacity reservation request through Cabinet Office Government Property Agency. Direct award possible under national security provisions.
MOD Datacentres
- Locations: Multiple UK sites (classified)
- Security: Up to TOP SECRET
- Availability: Limited civilian workload capacity; primarily defence use
- Status: RESTRICTED - MOD workloads only
Commercial Sovereign Options
UK Colocation Providers (Non-US Ownership)
- Ark Data Centres (UK-owned) - London, M4 corridor - G-Cloud approved
- Datum Datacentres (UK-owned) - Farnborough - Government experience
- Next Generation Data (UK-owned) - Wales - Large scale capacity
- Custodian Data Centres (UK-owned) - Kent - Subsea cable connectivity
Note: Major providers like Equinix (US), Digital Realty (US), and CyrusOne (US) are subject to US jurisdiction. Verify ownership structure before contracting.
OVHcloud UK
- Location: London datacentre
- Capacity: Large scale, rapid provisioning
- Security: ISO 27001, SOC 2 - not UK government accredited yet
- Status: AVAILABLE - Requires accreditation
UK Capacity Strategy
European Union
EU-Level Facilities
Gaia-X Federated Facilities
- Concept: Federated sovereign cloud across member states
- Status: Framework operational; implementation varies by member state
- Participants: T-Systems (DE), Orange (FR), Atos (FR), numerous others
- Action: Coordinate emergency activation through Gaia-X governance
Key Member State Facilities
Germany
- T-Systems (Deutsche Telekom) - Frankfurt, Munich - Major sovereign capacity
- IONOS (United Internet) - German-owned, multiple locations
- Hetzner - German-owned, large scale, cost-effective
- Open Telekom Cloud - Sovereign-by-design platform
France
- OVHcloud - French-owned, largest EU provider, Paris/Strasbourg
- Scaleway (Iliad) - French-owned, Paris, Amsterdam
- Outscale (Dassault) - French sovereign cloud, government contracts
- 3DS Outscale - SecNumCloud certified
Netherlands
- Leaseweb - Dutch-owned (though verify current ownership)
- BIT - Dutch-owned, Amsterdam
- Note: Amsterdam is major interconnection hub; many US providers present
Nordic Countries
- Telia (Sweden) - Major Nordic provider
- Basefarm/Orange (Norway) - Government cloud experience
- Note: Cold climate advantages for energy efficiency
EU Coordination Requirement
EU-wide capacity requires coordination through European Commission DIGIT and member state CIOs. Recommended: Emergency meeting of EU Digital Infrastructure Forum within Week 1. Leverage existing IPCEI (Important Projects of Common European Interest) framework for accelerated procurement.
Canada
Government-Owned Facilities
Shared Services Canada (SSC) Enterprise Data Centres
- Locations: Borden (Ontario), Gatineau (Quebec), and regional facilities
- Security: Protected B, some Secret capability
- Current state: Consolidation programme ongoing; capacity available
- Status: ACTIVE - Government owned
Immediate Action Required
SSC controls federal datacenter capacity. Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) directive required to prioritise sovereign cloud buildout. Week 1: Emergency briefing to TBS CIO.
Canadian Commercial Sovereign Options
Canadian-Owned Providers
- Bell Canada - Major telco with datacenter capacity, Canadian-owned
- Rogers Communications - Canadian-owned, datacenter services
- TELUS - Canadian-owned, government cloud experience
- eStruxture Data Centers - Canadian-owned, Montreal/Vancouver
- Cologix Canada - Verify ownership (US parent company concerns)
Warning: Many Canadian datacenters are US-owned (Equinix, Digital Realty). Verify beneficial ownership before contracting for sovereign workloads.
Provincial Government Facilities
- Ontario: Provincial datacenter capacity (coordinate with Ontario Digital Service)
- Quebec: Strong data sovereignty requirements; provincial capacity available
- British Columbia: BC government datacenter facilities
- Alberta: Provincial computing resources
Federal-provincial coordination required. Consider emergency federal-provincial agreement framework.
Australia
Government-Owned Facilities
Australian Government Data Centres
- GovDC (Canberra) - Certified for government workloads
- CDC Data Centres - Canberra-based, government-focused
- Security: Certified to PROTECTED, some higher classifications
- Status: ACTIVE
Defence Facilities
- Locations: Multiple classified facilities
- Security: Up to TOP SECRET
- Availability: Defence workloads; limited civilian availability
Australian Commercial Sovereign Options
Australian-Owned Providers
- Macquarie Data Centres - Australian-owned, Canberra/Sydney
- NEXTDC - Australian-owned (ASX listed), Sydney/Melbourne/Perth/Canberra
- AirTrunk - Australian-founded (verify current ownership structure)
- Telstra - Australian-owned telco with datacenter capacity
IRAP Assessment: All providers must have current IRAP (Infosec Registered Assessors Program) certification for government workloads. Verify PROTECTED certification.
Australian Coordination
Coordinate through DTA Whole-of-Government Hosting Strategy. Emergency authorisation required from Digital Economy Minister. Week 1: ASD/ACSC briefing on sovereign requirements.
Site Selection Criteria
| Criterion | Requirement | Verification |
|---|---|---|
| Ownership | Non-US beneficial ownership throughout corporate structure | Legal due diligence on parent companies |
| Location | Within jurisdiction borders; not subject to US extraterritorial reach | Physical address verification |
| Security Certification | National security accreditation (ISO 27001 minimum; national scheme preferred) | Valid certificates from recognised assessors |
| Power Resilience | N+1 minimum, 2N preferred; UPS and generator backup | Site inspection and SLA review |
| Network Connectivity | Multiple carrier-neutral connections; no single point of failure | Network topology review |
| Scalability | Capacity to scale 2-3x within 6 months | Expansion plans and power availability |
| Staff Vetting | All staff vetted to national security standards | Vetting process documentation |
Emergency Provisioning Approach
Week 1-2: Immediate Capacity Activation
- Formal reservation of all available government datacenter capacity
- Emergency contracts with pre-qualified sovereign commercial providers
- Direct award procurement under national security provisions
- Inventory of available rack space across all facilities
Week 2-8: Rapid Expansion
- Modular/prefabricated datacenter deployment (container-based solutions)
- Accelerated fit-out of shell space in existing facilities
- Power and cooling upgrades to existing government sites
- Emergency procurement of networking infrastructure
Week 8-24: Sustained Buildout
- New facility construction where required (fast-track planning)
- Long-term capacity contracts with sovereign providers
- Cross-jurisdiction load balancing and failover arrangements
- Resilience and redundancy improvements