• VIRTUS will add a 32.5MW AI-ready facility to its Slough campus, expanding its UK estate beyond 300MW
  • The project shows how operators are expanding within established campuses where power, planning, and infrastructure are already in place

The fact

VIRTUS Data Centres will develop LONDON19, a new 32.5MW data centre at the Slough Trading Estate in Berkshire. The facility will expand the company's UK portfolio beyond 300MW of operational and committed capacity that is designed to support AI, cloud, and enterprise workloads.

Planning permission has already been secured through the Slough Trading Estate's Simplified Planning Zone, with property developer SEGRO responsible for delivering the powered shell before VIRTUS completes the technical fit-out. Construction will begin following final design approval.

LONDON19 will incorporate advanced cooling systems, sustainable construction materials, and infrastructure for future waste heat recovery, while targeting a BREEAM Excellent rating. The development extends VIRTUS' long-standing presence at one of the UK's most established data centre clusters.

The assessment

As demand for AI infrastructure accelerates, the challenge is no longer simply building new data centres. In many established markets, access to power, planning approval, and development-ready sites has become the main constraint on new capacity. Operators that already control these assets can expand more quickly than those starting from undeveloped land.

VIRTUS' expansion reflects this change. Rather than securing a new location, the company is adding capacity within an established campus where planning frameworks, grid connections and operational infrastructure are already in place. In mature markets such as Slough, expanding existing campuses can shorten development timelines and reduce execution risk at a time when new projects face increasing delays.

For BTW readers, the strategic value of a data centre campus is shifting beyond its existing capacity. Established campuses increasingly function as long-term infrastructure platforms, allowing operators to add new AI capacity without repeating the most difficult stages of development. As power constraints tighten and permitting becomes more complex, ownership of expansion-ready campuses may become one of the industry's strongest competitive advantages.

What to watch

Watch whether more operators prioritise campus expansion over greenfield developments in constrained markets such as London, Frankfurt and Amsterdam. Future investment decisions will show whether established campuses with existing power and planning approvals become the preferred model for delivering new AI infrastructure.