Schwarz Group plans 5.6 billion euro data center in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

Investment plans and technical capacity

German retail conglomerate Schwarz Group announced plans to invest up to 5.6 billion euros by 2033 to construct a large data center in Dummerstorf near Rostock. The facility is designed to reach a processing capacity of 240 megawatts in its initial phase, with potential expansion up to one gigawatt by 2045. The company expects the operating site to create 120 permanent jobs, while generating regional contracts for local craftspeople and the construction industry during the build. The facility follows an 11 billion euro data center project that the group announced in 2025 in Lübbenau, Brandenburg. Processing capacity will initially handle internal company data from supply chains, payment transactions, and loyalty programs across 14,200 Lidl and Kaufland branches before scaling for external European clients.

Energy grid connection and environmental systems

Grid availability determined the location choice in northern Germany, where onshore and offshore wind farms generate surplus electricity. Transmission operator 50Hertz pledged connection to the 380-kilovolt extra-high voltage grid, enabling construction to begin in 2027. In traditional German data hubs such as Frankfurt, operators face waiting times of up to ten years for comparable grid connections. Local power consumption will also absorb green electricity that grid operators otherwise curtail during periods of low transmission capacity. To manage resource use, the site features a closed-loop water cooling system and a signed declaration of intent with Stadtwerke Rostock to feed server waste heat into the municipal heating network. Bernie Wagner explained the regional infrastructure logic behind moving data instead of power.

We messed up in Germany with the expansion of energy routes. Now it is easier to bring data south via fiber optics than to wait until power transmission lines are built there.

European cloud strategy and corporate growth

The Dummerstorf project expands the technical footprint of Schwarz Digits KG, the IT division of the retail conglomerate. Schwarz Group posted 185.6 billion euros in total annual revenue across its global workforce of more than 600,000 employees. In the fiscal year ending in late February, Schwarz Digits generated 2.2 billion euros in revenue, representing a 16% year-on-year increase driven by demand for cloud services. The division operates as an IT provider offering cloud platforms and cybersecurity, aiming to position itself as a European alternative to American hyperscalers like Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure. Group executives stated that housing data infrastructure under German legal jurisdiction protects public service delivery from foreign dependencies. Gerd Chrzanowski outlined the corporate rationale during the project launch.

We want digital sovereignty and digital value creation to take place in Germany and Europe again.

Political timing and regional impact

The project was officially presented at a joint press conference in Schwerin featuring Schwarz Group leadership and state officials. Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Minister-President Manuela Schwesig presented the investment as a step toward reducing reliance on non-European data centers. The announcement arrives ahead of the state parliamentary elections in September, where Schwesig's Social Democratic Party trails the Alternative for Germany candidate Leif-Erik Holm in regional polling. State officials expect the large power consumer to stabilize local grid economics by reducing costly curtailment of coastal wind turbines.