The Schwarz Group and the State Government of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern have announced a strategic partnership to promote Germany as a digital hub. The aim of this cooperation is to significantly strengthen Europe's position in the field of digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence, with Mecklenburg-Vorpommern serving as a central and sovereign hub. The Minister President of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Manuela Schwesig, and the Managing Partner of the Schwarz Group, Gerd Chrzanowski, underscored the importance of this undertaking at a joint press conference.
At the core of the partnership are two main areas: the construction of an extensive infrastructure project in the form of a data centre, and the joint development of high-performance digital solutions specifically tailored to the requirements of a sovereign public administration for the federal state. Gerd Chrzanowski emphasised that digital sovereignty is created not through mere appeals, but through concrete action, reliable infrastructure and practical applications. He explained that the Schwarz Group is taking entrepreneurial responsibility and investing sustainably in the future of Germany as a business location.
Extensive Investments and Capacity Expansion
The planned investments for the first phase of the data centre's expansion, which is expected to reach a capacity of 240 megawatts, amount to an estimated EUR 5.6 billion. This data centre, whose plot is located in the commercial area of the municipality of Dummerstorf, is expected to reach its full capacity by 2033. The Schwarz Group intends to use part of this capacity for its own ecosystem, while the other part will strengthen the development and scaling of sovereign IT solutions, bundled within the IT and digital division Schwarz Digits. In the long term, an expansion of the connection capacity to up to 1 gigawatt by 2045 is planned.
The choice of location in northern Germany is strategically justified, particularly by the high availability of sustainably generated electricity, which is obtained from onshore and offshore wind power, among other sources. In addition, the designated location offers the possibility of direct connection to the 380-kilovolt ultra-high voltage grid, which makes the transport of large amounts of electricity more efficient and reduces grid fees due to the higher voltage level. The climatic conditions, which allow for efficient free cooling using ambient air, also contribute to sustainability. A letter of intent with Stadtwerke Rostock regarding the use of the data centre's waste heat has already been signed, with the aim of integrating it sustainably and beneficially into municipal heat planning. Manuela Schwesig views the Schwarz Group's investment decision as an opportunity for greater independence and data security for the state, which will benefit in many ways from this investment.
Digital Administration as a Blueprint for Germany
The collaboration between the State Government of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Schwarz Digits is designed for the long-term modernisation of administrative digitalisation. By jointly enabling a modern, efficient, and secure digital administration, tangible benefits for citizens and businesses are to be created. The implementation of groundbreaking technical applications in the state's public administration is already planned for 2026. These include digital building permits, implemented on the sovereign cloud platform STACKIT, and the introduction of openDesk, starting with secure, fully managed teacher workstations in the education sector.
- —Digital building permits on the STACKIT cloud platform.
- —Introduction of openDesk, starting with teacher workstations.
- —Development of scalable solutions for public administration.
This project is conceived as a scalable and transferable lighthouse project. The solutions developed in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern are intended not only to contribute to the modernisation of the federal state but also to serve as a model for the entire Federal Republic of Germany, thereby making a significant contribution to digital transformation.
