Data Centers in Brussels

Brussels – Strategic EU Hub for Low-Latency Access

Executive Summary

Brussels is the premier colocation market for enterprises targeting the European Union's core economic and political institutions. Its dense network ecosystem and central location provide a critical advantage for delivering low-latency, resilient services across Western Europe. This strategic positioning directly supports uptime and application performance for mission-critical operations.

Brussels: At A Glance

Network & Connectivity Ecosystem

Brussels's location at the heart of Europe makes it a vital interconnection point. The market is characterized by a strong mix of global and regional carriers, ensuring competitive and resilient connectivity options for any deployment.

Carrier Density & Carrier Neutrality: The market provides access to 36 network providers, as of September 2025. A healthy ecosystem of carrier-neutral facilities ensures competitive pricing and diverse routing options.

Direct Cloud On-Ramps: With 3 dedicated cloud on-ramps, Brussels offers private, high-performance connections to 16 different cloud regions. Direct connectivity is available for Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud (GCP), allowing enterprises to build secure and reliable hybrid cloud architectures.

Internet Exchange Points (IXPs): The primary exchange is the Belgian National Internet eXchange (BNIX). Peering at BNIX allows for efficient traffic exchange, significantly reducing latency for services delivered within Belgium and to neighboring countries.

Bare Metal: Bare metal cloud servers are readily available from multiple providers. This allows for dedicated, high-performance computing without the overhead of virtualization, with providers like OVHcloud offering services in the region.

Power Analysis

Belgium's power infrastructure is both reliable and increasingly focused on sustainable sources, with a balanced energy mix of nuclear, renewables, and fossil fuels.

Average Cost Of Power: Industrial power is priced at approximately €0.09/kWh, as of August 2025. This competitive rate helps manage operational expenditures for high-density computing and large-scale deployments.

Power Grid Reliability: The power grid serving the primary data center zones in and around Brussels is well-engineered and stable. Major colocation facilities are supported by redundant power feeds from multiple utility substations, ensuring high levels of uptime.

Market Access, Business & Tax Climate

Deploying in Brussels provides a strategic advantage for accessing one of the world's most important political and economic centers.

Proximity To Key Business Districts: Data centers are located to effectively serve the European Quarter, home to the European Commission, European Parliament, and numerous international corporations and NGOs. This proximity is essential for applications requiring minimal delay.

Regional Market Reach: Brussels offers low-latency connectivity to over 80 million people within a few hundred kilometers, covering the entirety of the Benelux region, Western Germany, and Northern France. It is a key market for reaching the European single market.

Tax Advantage For Data Centers: Belgium offers a stable and predictable corporate tax environment. While there are no specific tax breaks for data centers, the country's established financial framework provides a clear and straightforward climate for investment and operations.

Natural Disaster Risk

Overall disaster risk for Belgium is rated as Low (2.6 out of 10), as of September 2025. The country is not prone to severe seismic or extreme weather events, making it a physically secure location for critical IT infrastructure.

The primary natural hazards to consider are:

• Coastal Flood: The most significant national risk, though its direct impact on inland Brussels is minimal.
• River Flood: A moderate, localized risk in specific areas, mitigated by modern infrastructure and facility site selection.
• Earthquake: A low but present seismic risk. Data centers are constructed to meet building codes that account for this.