Sines, Portugal - 3 March 2026 — Start Campus today announced that SIN01, the first operational facility at its SINES Data Campus, has achieved LEED Gold BD+C v4 certification, one of the world’s most widely recognized standards for sustainable building design and construction.

Awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and verified by Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), LEED Gold– is granted to projects demonstrating best-in-class performance across energy efficiency, water usage, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality.

SIN01 achieved 75 points, placing it at the upper range of the LEED Gold certification tier.

As a Building Design and Construction (BD+C) certification, LEED evaluates sustainability at the design and construction stage – embedding environmental performance into the asset from day one, rather than addressing it only during operations.

This certification underscores Start Campus’ commitment to delivering AI-scale digital infrastructure that integrates performance and efficiency with environmental responsibility from the earliest stages of development.

Key sustainability features contributing to the certification include:

• Advanced energy optimisation designed for AI-density workloads.

• Innovative cooling systems engineered to significantly reduce water consumption.

• Sustainable materials sourcing supported by Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs).

• High-durability specifications extending asset lifecycle performance.

• Construction waste diversion aligned to circular economy principles.

• High Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) standards supporting workforce wellbeing.

While there are notable LEED Gold buildings across Europe – from high-rise offices to sustainable regeneration projects, SIN01 stands out for embedding performance across the lifecycle of AI-scale digital infrastructure.

SIN01 is the first building within the 1.2 GW SINES Data Campus, a gigascale development designed to support the next generation of cloud and AI infrastructure powered by renewable energy.

The certification establishes SIN01 as a benchmark for sustainable digital infrastructure in Europe and reinforces Start Campus’ broader mission to scale compute capacity while minimizing environmental impact across the full asset lifecycle.

Start Campus also acknowledges the collaboration of LEED consultancy partner Inéria, whose expertise supported the certification process.

👉 Learn more about our Sustainability strategy: www.startcampus.pt/sustainability
👉 Learn more about the SINES Data Campus: www.startcampus.pt/sines

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About Start Campus

Start Campus is building andoperating the SINES Data Campus, a 1.2 GW data center in Portugal, creating oneof Europe’s largest and most sustainable data ecosystems with market-leadingglobal connectivity. SINES DC provides maximum optionality for customers withpowered shell, turn-key and build-to-suit solutions. The company’s advancedplatform is AI-ready and addresses the future needs of the industry byintegrating liquid cooling technologies into its flexible and scalable design.With a total combined investment value of an estimated €8.5bn, the campusutilises 100% renewable energy and targets an industry-leading PUE (Power UsageEffectiveness) of 1.1 and a WUE (Water Usage Effectiveness) of 0 by harnessingthe cooling power of the ocean.

For more information, please visit www.startcampus.pt

About the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming the way buildings and communities are designed, built, and operated. Founded in 1993, USGBC developed LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), one of the world’s most widely used green building rating systems. LEED provides a comprehensive framework for healthy, highly efficient, and cost-saving green buildings, supporting energy efficiency, water conservation, sustainable materials selection, and improved indoor environmental quality across projects in more than 180 countries and territories.

Learn more: https://www.usgbc.org 

About Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI)

Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI) is the independent organization that administers project certifications and professional credentials within the LEED framework. Established in 2008, GBCI provides third-party verification to ensure projects meet rigorous performance and sustainability standards, maintaining the integrity and global credibility of LEED and other green business certification programs.

Learn more: https://www.gbci.org