Digital Realty FRA32 Frankfurt: 9MW AI-Ready Data Center
Status: Operational / High-Density Upgrade (April 2026) | Location: Frankfurt am Main
Project Overview
FRA32 stands as a critical evolution within Digital Realty’s Frankfurt campus, complementing its twin facility FRA31 and completing the strategically significant three-building cluster at Wilhelm-Fay-Straße. While it maintains the proven 9MW architectural blueprint of its predecessors, FRA32 distinguishes itself through its role as a primary hub for Digital Realty’s ServiceFabric™ platform. This orchestration layer enables enterprises to seamlessly interconnect private AI infrastructure with multiple public cloud on-ramps, creating a highly flexible hybrid ecosystem tailored for modern workloads. As of 2026, the facility has been formally designated as a High-Performance Compute (HPC) specialization site, reflecting the growing demand for AI training and inference capabilities. To support these intensive workloads, FRA32 integrates advanced liquid-to-chip cooling loops, allowing efficient thermal management of high-density racks. Additionally, the building leverages an innovative pumped refrigerant “free cooling” system, which plays a vital role in achieving a Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) below 1.25, an essential requirement under Frankfurt’s stringent energy efficiency regulations. Its location near the A66 motorway further enhances its strategic importance, acting as a low-latency bridge between the Sossenheim data cluster and the expanding Hanau industrial technology corridor.
Quick Facts
| Field | Value |
|---|
| Project Name | Digital Realty FRA32 Frankfurt: 9MW AI-Ready Data Center |
| Location | Frankfurt am Main |
| Status | Operational / High-Density Upgrade (April 2026) |
| Commissioning | Full Site Go-Live: 2023; AI Density Expansion: 2025–2026 |
| Total IT Load | 9.0 MW |
| Total Capacity | 75,000 Sq. Ft. (Part of 27MW Wilhelm-Fay Campus) |
| Tier Level | Tier III+ (Concurrently Maintainable) |
| Project Type | Retail & Wholesale Colocation / AI-Optimized Hub |
City Profile
| Header | Details |
|---|
| City Name | Frankfurt |
| Population | 7,80,000 |
| Urban Agglomeration | 5.8 million |
| City GDP | €160.8 billion |
| Per Capita Income | $101,000 USD |
| City Tier | Tier 1 |
| Key Strengths | Hosting DE-CIX, the worlds largest Internet Exchange Point; financial capital of the Eurozone; strict sustainability mandates driving innovation. |
Companies Involved
| Header | Details |
|---|
| Developer / Operator | Digital Realty |
| Strategic Infrastructure Partner | City of Frankfurt Economic Development. |
| Construction Contractor | Regional German EPCs; ~200 technical staff on-site. |
| MEP Engineering | Distributed Redundant (DR) 4-to-3 UPS; Medium voltage 10kV. |
| Network Connectivity | Direct cross-connects to 340+ carriers and major cloud regions. |
| Power Infrastructure | 9.0 MW dedicated; Part of 40MVA Campus supply. |
Technical Specifications
| Header | Details |
|---|
| Power Capacity | 9.0 MW |
| UPS Redundancy | $N+1$ (Distributed Redundant) |
| Cooling System | Pumped refrigerant free-cooling ($N+1$ capacity). |
| Connectivity | Strategic link to Global Cloud on-ramps and DE-CIX. |
| PUE Target | < 1.25 |
| Energy Mix | 100% Renewable Energy matched. |
Milestones
| Header | Details |
|---|
| Announcement | 2020 (Campus announcement) |
| Construction Start | 2021 |
| Phase 1 Go-Live | 2023 |
| Full Buildout | Operational (Ongoing high-density retrofits) |
Investment Details
| Header | Details |
|---|
| Total Investment | Part of Digital Realty's €2B+ Frankfurt expansion. |
| Funding | Digital Realty Trust, Inc. Capital Expenditure. |