Power first. Then compute.
Our thesis in one line: the constraint on European AI infrastructure is not chips or demand, it is firm, affordable, low-carbon electricity delivered to a site that can be built on. We invest where that constraint is solved.
The thesis
Demand for compute is set outside Europe; supply of power is decided inside it. Hyperscalers and AI operators want European capacity for reasons of latency, data sovereignty and customer proximity. What they cannot import is a grid connection. In most European markets the waiting time for a large new connection is measured in years, and the queue is not shortening.
Renewable generation is the cheapest power in Europe, but only where it is firmed. A data hall needs supply every hour of the year. Wind and solar deliver it only with storage, a grid connection strong enough to import and export, and a supply contract that covers the remaining hours. Putting those elements together is a development task, not a procurement task — and it is where value is created.
The best sites already exist. Former power stations, industrial estates and mining land carry grid capacity, industrial zoning and cooling water. Returning them to productive use is faster, cheaper and better received locally than greenfield development.
What we look for in a site
Criteria we apply before any budget is spent. A site that fails two of them is not pursued.
Grid
- Existing high-voltage connection of 50 MW or more, or a firm offer with an energisation date
- Capacity to import and export
- A transmission or distribution operator willing to engage on a connection agreement
Land and permits
- Industrial or comparable zoning already in place
- 10 hectares or more with room for staged expansion
- A planning authority open to data-centre and generation use
Resource and services
- Wind or solar resource on or near the site, or PPA-eligible generation within the same bidding zone
- Fibre routes and water for cooling, or a viable closed-loop design
- Offtake for waste heat: district heating, industry or agriculture
How we create value
Development, not trading
Value is created between securing a site and energising a campus: connection agreements, permits, generation contracts, storage design and a signed tenant. We hold projects through that phase ourselves rather than buying them ready-made at a developer's margin.
Integrated planning
Generation, storage and load are dimensioned together. A campus that can shift part of its workload and a battery that can arbitrage the market turn a variable renewable resource into a firmer, more valuable one. Planned separately, each element is worth less.
Contracted cash flows
Capacity is pre-let on long-term leases or powered-shell agreements with operators and hyperscalers before construction financing is drawn. Surplus power is sold under PPAs or into the market; heat is sold locally where a network exists.
Long-term ownership
The fund's return comes from operating the assets and, where appropriate, refinancing them once they are stabilised. Sales are an option, not the plan.
Sustainability as a design condition
Trustvolt campuses are designed to run on renewable electricity supplied physically, not offset on paper. Waste heat is reused where a network exists; cooling is designed for low water use; land is brought back into use rather than newly consumed.
The fund reports under SFDR Article 8 and publishes an annual sustainability report to investors.
What we do not do. We do not build data centres on gas-fired supply with an intention to convert later. We do not acquire operating assets purely for yield. We do not develop in markets where a connection cannot be secured within a realistic horizon.