Nvidia-backed Nscale in talks to raise $2b: sources

Nscale, a UK-based AI data center company, is reportedly in talks to raise about US$2 billion in new funding, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The company, which was spun out of a cryptocurrency miner in 2024 and supplies AI computing infrastructure, is working with Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase on the potential deal.

Nscale raised over US$1.5 billion in September and October 2025, after partnership announcements with Nvidia and OpenAI.

Microsoft is building a US$10 billion data center in Portugal with Nscale and a local partner, and plans to lease capacity from Nscale in Norway and the UK.

Discussions are ongoing, and the funding round may not proceed, the sources said.

Representatives for Nscale, Goldman Sachs, and JP Morgan declined to comment.

🔗 Source: Bloomberg

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Nscale’s $2B raise faces uncertain power delivery timing

Aker Nscale (an Nscale-affiliated developer in Norway) plans a 250 MW site in Korgen that awaits a Statnett (Norway’s high-voltage grid operator) allocation and it postponed its filing due to zoning delays. Plans include 12,600 GPUs (graphics processing units) at Start Campus (a hyperscale data center developer) in Sines, Portugal.
Nscale landed an expanded Microsoft deal for 116,000 Nvidia GB300 GPUs (Nvidia’s latest high-performance AI accelerators) worth ~$14 billion. Ready-for-service dates depend on local steps as Microsoft warned that permitting could affect timing in Portugal. Investors stay unsure until Statnett allocates power and zoning clears in Korgen, while Portugal needs clearer permitting plus interconnection timelines for Nscale to reach 1.2 GW (gigawatts) on the schedule implied by customer demand.

High-voltage (HV) and engineering–procurement–construction (EPC) vendors have an opening in Microsoft–Nscale’s Portugal plan

Microsoft has a lease at Start Campus in Sines with plans to install 12,600 Nvidia processors. That opens orders for high-voltage switchgear, transformers, liquid cooling systems, plus EPC services for the SIN01 operational building (Start Campus’s first structure) and five more structures. Suppliers can watch Start Campus procurement and Portuguese renewable power purchase agreement (PPA) tenders.
A LinkedIn post by NS Nordics AS (a Nordic data center services firm) says Nscale with InfraPartners (an infrastructure development plus investment firm) plan a 60 MW data center in southern Norway, with construction in late 2025. Operations begin in 2026 using 100% renewable power, primarily hydropower, plus cooling that uses Norway’s cold climate.