CPP Investments, the investment arm of the Canada Pension Plan, and Equinix have agreed to acquire Nordic data center operator atNorth from Partners Group in a transaction valued at US$4 billion. The deal gives Equinix expanded access to high-density colocation and built-to-suit capacity across Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, targeting enterprise, hyperscale and AI-driven demand in the region.
CPP Investments will invest approximately US$1.6 billion for a 60% controlling stake, while Equinix will hold 40%. The companies have provisionally arranged a US$4.2 billion (€3.6 billion) financing package underwritten by European and Canadian lenders to fund the acquisition and future expansion. Equinix said the transaction will be immediately accretive to adjusted funds from operations (AFFO) per share upon close, subject to regulatory approvals and customary conditions.
atNorth operates eight data centers with additional sites under development and a secured power position of 1 gigawatt (1,000 megawatts). The company maintains an installed and active development pipeline of approximately 800 megawatts expected to come online over the next five years. Several facilities support high-density AI and high-performance computing workloads with liquid cooling infrastructure. atNorth integrates renewable energy sourcing, heat reuse initiatives and modular design across its portfolio. The company will continue to operate independently under the atNorth brand.
The transaction includes:
- Enterprise value of US$4 billion
- CPP Investments stake of ~60%; Equinix stake of ~40%
- US$4.2 billion (€3.6 billion) committed financing package
- Eight operational data centers across five Nordic countries
- ~800 MW installed and active development pipeline over five years
- 1 GW (1,000 MW) of secured power for future expansion
- Liquid cooling-enabled facilities supporting AI and HPC workloads
- Equinix’s existing eight Nordic sites (five in Helsinki, three in Stockholm) within a broader European footprint of 100+ facilities across 20 countries
“This acquisition is a powerful validation of atNorth’s journey and its market position as the leading Nordics data center platform,” said Eyjólfur Magnús Kristinsson, CEO of atNorth. “It further illustrates the strategic importance of the region as Europe’s rising AI powerhouse.”
🌐 Analysis: The acquisition strengthens Equinix’s position in Europe’s AI infrastructure buildout, particularly in the Nordics where renewable energy availability, cooler climates and supportive regulatory frameworks attract hyperscale and high-density deployments. With 1 GW of secured power and an 800 MW near-term pipeline, atNorth provides capacity aligned with the accelerating compute requirements of AI training and inference workloads.
For CPP Investments, the deal expands an existing partnership with Equinix that includes prior xScale joint ventures. Institutional capital continues to target European data center platforms as hyperscale cloud providers and AI developers seek sovereign, energy-efficient locations. The Nordics have emerged as a strategic region in this shift, competing with established hubs such as Frankfurt, London and Amsterdam on sustainability, power availability and long-term expansion potential.
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