Veolia announces an ambitious plan to accelerate its footprint in the data centers industry and microelectronics, targeting over €1 billion in annual revenue from these two markets by 2030. The company aims to leverage its proprietary technologies and global expertise to address the growing demand for integrated solutions in water management, local energy and hazardous waste treatment.
At the same time, Veolia intends to fully leverage the potential of digital and AI-driven solutions to sustain its recurring efficiency plan of above €350M per year. The Group targets to double the share of digital and AI efficiency gains to 50% of operational efficiency by 2030, compared with 23% in 2025.
Demand for data centre capacity is expected to nearly triple by 20301, driven in large part by hyperscaling, the rapid expansion of large-scale, cloud and AI computing infrastructure, while microelectronics are becoming a geopolitical flashpoint, with chips manufacturing continuously diversified and reshored to safeguard national sovereignty, including a projected 26% growth2 in 2026 alone.
This exponential growth is putting increasing strain on key resources. Microelectronics fabrication and data centres consume vast amounts of water and energy, with chipmaking also relying on ultra-pure water critical to performance. By 2030, the overall water use of data centres and semiconductor manufacturing3 is expected to equal that of 46 million people, roughly the size of the New York, Los Angeles and Paris metropolitan areas combined.
In this context, securing reliable supplies, while protecting ecosystems and curbing use, is becoming a pressing challenge for both industry and governments, with implications for operational resilience, regulatory approval and public acceptance.
Veolia’s innovative technologies help reduce water consumption, recover valuable resources, provide local energy solutions and safely treat complex waste streams, essential in building the infrastructure behind sustainable digital infrastructure and microelectronics.
“Veolia is strategically positioned to help shape a resilient and sustainable future for the world’s fastest-growing industries, supporting innovation and progress while ensuring that growth remains sustainable.This push builds on our world leadership in water technologies, local energy and hazardous waste, as well as our new “Data Center Resource 360” offering, launched today,” said Veolia CEO Estelle Brachlianoff (pictured below at the launch event in London).
“By leveraging our proprietary solutions and this unique integrated expertise we deliver tailored, innovative approaches to build resilience and environmental security. Our ambition is to become the partner of choice for these strategic industries, helping them scale responsibly, optimise resource use, and achieve sustainable growth, while protecting critical environmental assets for the long term.”
