What is Start Campus?

Start Campus is a European data center campus developer building the SINES Campus in Sines, Portugal - a gigascale campus designed for cloud, AI and HPC workloads, with up to 1.2 GW of IT capacity planned across six buildings (SIN01 to SIN06).

Where is the SINES Campus located?

The SINES Campus is located in Sines, on Portugal's Atlantic coast, south of Lisbon. The site combines proximity to international subsea cable landing stations, a deep-water port and a robust power grid.

How large is the SINES Campus?

The campus is planned for up to 1.2 GW of IT capacity across six data center buildings, making it one of the largest data center campuses in Europe.

SIN01 is the first building of the SINES Campus, inaugurated in 2025, and the largest data center ever built and operated in Portugal. It holds LEED Gold and OCP Ready v2 certifications.

How does the seawater cooling system work?

SIN01 uses an innovative seawater cooling system that leverages the existing ocean water infrastructure in Sines, significantly reducing freshwater consumption and improving energy efficiency compared with conventional cooling methods.

Is the campus powered by renewable energy?

Yes. Operations are powered by 100% renewable energy, and Start Campus has an agreement with EDP to accelerate renewable-powered data center development in Portugal.

Is the SINES Campus AI-ready?

Yes. The campus is designed for high-density AI and HPC workloads, supports advanced liquid cooling deployments, and SIN01 is OCP Ready v2 certified.

What connectivity does the campus offer?

The campus benefits from proximity to subsea cables connecting Europe to the Americas and Africa, and DE-CIX is ready for service at the SINES DC.

Which certifications and awards has Start Campus received?

SIN01 is LEED Gold and OCP Ready v2 certified, and was named European Data Center Project of the Year 2025 and Best Data Centre in Europe at the Datacloud Awards 2026.

Who has invested in or partnered with Start Campus?

Microsoft announced one of its largest investments in Europe at Start Campus. Partners include Siemens Energy, EDP, DE-CIX and JetCool.

How does Start Campus support the local community?

Through the GAMMA Community Platform in Sines, the START Rise AI Challenge with Porto Business School, talent initiatives with NOVA IMS, and an Environmental Awareness Program focused on local biodiversity.