Greek columnist Agis Veroutis has called for a national task force to bypass bureaucracy and build 1 GW of data center capacity in Greece.
Writing for publication Capital.gr on Monday, August 24, 2026, Veroutis argued that Greece possesses the wealth of a serious nation but maintains the productive choices of a neighborhood coffee shop. He noted that while Greece has sun, wind, mineral resources, available land, major trade routes, and thousands of skilled engineers, it has struggled to update its economic model. Greece also benefits from membership in the European Union single market, which represents one of the wealthiest economic zones globally.
Economic strengths and shipping model
Veroutis stated that shipping remains the major exception to Greece's economic stagnation. Decades of stable institutional and tax rules provided by the state allowed Greek shipowners to invest capital, expertise, and international networks, resulting in the world's largest merchant fleet under Greek ownership.
In contrast, Veroutis wrote that most other economic sectors change plans every four years, distributing public funds to entities that learn the latest terminology of ESPA, the National Strategic Reference Framework for European Union structural funding. In recent years, public procurement labeled digital platforms purchased by the state as industry. Veroutis noted these projects often have a single government client, produce no exports, and expire with their contracts, leaving the productive base unchanged despite extensive press releases and dashboards.
Historical precedents for state industrial policy
Veroutis wrote that countries successfully altering their economic models have relied on public funding, cheap energy, infrastructure, land, state orders, and financing. He argued that government neutrality usually ends where the next industrial revolution begins, though state selection carries risks of burning public funds or relying on imports.
To illustrate state involvement, Veroutis cited historical precedents from major economies. The United States government provided public land and funding for transcontinental railways, later financing highway networks, aerospace research, and the birth of the internet. Post-war Germany utilized state development bank KfW to provide low-cost, long-term loans for energy, mining, steel, and export sectors. Japan directed capital and research into strategic industries through its Ministry of International Trade and Industry, known as MITI, while France funded high-speed TGV rail, nuclear power, aeronautics, and the Minitel videotex network.
China electric vehicle strategy and Western competition
Referencing his previous article, titled "What China teaches us about liberalism," Veroutis examined China's strategy to construct an electric vehicle industry. Between 2009 and 2023, China allocated 230.9 billion dollars to assemble the entire production chain and opened its market to Tesla, allowing competition to select corporate winners within a state-selected field.
By 2025, China manufactured 70 percent of electric vehicles and more than 80 percent of battery cells globally. Chinese companies learned to compete against leading global players within their domestic market, leaving surviving firms equipped to handle intense competition. Veroutis warned that state sector selection carries high risks of overinvestment, debt, and zombie companies, arguing support must target the sector while market competition eliminates failing firms. Where states select specific corporate winners, taxpayers end up paying the payroll of failure.
Computing power as Greece's target sector
Veroutis argued that Greece must now select its own field to enter the vanguard of the Fourth Industrial Revolution by targeting computational capacity. Artificial intelligence models, cloud services, and production automation require data centers, electricity, cooling, and fiber-optic networks, demonstrating that cloud computing relies on heavy physical infrastructure including concrete, copper, and machinery.
Greece holds strategic advantages, including locations along subsea fiber cables connecting Europe with Asia and Africa, growing renewable energy generation, inactive land with power infrastructure in former coal mining regions, European Union data protection regulations, and skilled engineers currently working for foreign economies.
Data center capacity goal and economic potential
Veroutis proposed a specific national target of operating 1 gigawatt of total data center power capacity. Citing his article "1 GW data centers: Turnover equal to an entire tourism sector," he stated that a 1 GW computing base could theoretically generate annual turnover equivalent to Greece's total tourism receipts.
While tourism will continue providing national income, Veroutis stated that Greece's future economic standing will depend on local generation of computing power for businesses, research, and government functions. He warned that in a few years, an economy lacking abundant computing power will resemble an industrial economy operating without electricity.
Licensing delays and infrastructure challenges
Veroutis noted that constructing a major data center currently requires five to six years from initial concept to operation. Projects require suitable land, electrical capacity, environmental permits, urban planning approvals, cooling solutions, and multiple connections to international networks, as detailed in his article "Energy, data centers and AI: a crossword for strong solvers."
During Greece's lengthy licensing process, computer processors become outdated, capital sits idle, and international clients move to other nations. Veroutis stressed that each month of delay reduces investment returns, creating unbilled financial losses for the economy.
Proposed task force and zone licensing model
Veroutis stated that Greece lacks 231 billion dollars to purchase a position in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, while European Union state aid rules restrict selective financial subsidies. However, Greece can provide economic value by eliminating up to five years of bureaucratic waiting time before construction begins, using time saved in public sector queues as an industrial subsidy.
Under his proposal, the state would prepare designated installation zones by clarifying land use, completing licensing, and designing energy, cooling, and fiber-optic connections. The government would fund preliminary studies and shared infrastructure that remain national assets, recording their full cost down to the last euro. Private investors would bring billions of euros for construction and equipment, taking over mature projects ready for immediate building.
Auction terms, grid management, and local economic impact
Each auction would include necessary power generation and energy storage rights. Before bidding opens, grid operators must reserve electrical capacity, issue final connection terms, and establish binding construction schedules for network expansion.
Winning bidders would construct and fund additional power generation, battery storage, connections, backup power, and network grid upgrades required by their projects. Investment costs would remain with private investors rather than being passed onto household utility bills. New energy capacity would be built alongside data centers, preventing grid queue delays from dictating project timelines, while speed serves as Greece's attraction for international investors.
Task force governance and economic rules
Veroutis called for establishing a National Task Force led by a named executive with exclusive authority over final zone licensing. Participating agencies would face strict deadlines to submit feedback, and any agency failing to respond on time would forfeit sign-off authority, allowing the Task Force to proceed with decisions.
The Task Force would publish monthly progress reports on each zone, maintain a portfolio of ready project sites totaling 1 GW, and measure performance strictly in megawatts cleared for construction. Veroutis noted that personal accountability is viewed as a dangerous reform in the Greek public sector, calling to end empty photo opportunities in hardhats and academic seminars.
He emphasized that the plan requires cross-party agreement and stable regulations to outlast individual governments, contrasting long-term investment horizons with short-term political election cycles. International tenders will determine zone awards based on commercial risk, requiring investors to risk their own capital rather than relying on state funds.
Operational data centers will generate daily demand for energy, cooling systems, cybersecurity, software, and technical maintenance, creating steady business for domestic suppliers. Tender terms will mandate apprenticeship programs, partnerships with polytechnic universities and technical schools, and computing access for researchers and startups.
Veroutis concluded that Greece still has time to secure its position in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, warning that if it wastes this opportunity, it will end up renting its future by the computing hour. Readers can contact Veroutis at [email protected].
