A Croatian engineering firm is developing a data centre that will run on biomass energy generated from waste material produced by the country's olive oil industry.
Inovapro plans to construct what it describes as a "green AI data centre" in Čaporice, near Trilj, approximately 30 miles northeast of Split. The €20 million facility will have a capacity of around 3MW and is expected to be completed in the first half of 2027.
The project's key feature is its integration with an adjacent energy park that will convert olive production waste and discarded materials from Croatia's tourism and hospitality sectors into biomass power. After olive oil extraction, most of the fruit becomes waste, and the leftover material — known as pomace — poses disposal challenges due to its acidity and toxicity.
The two facilities will operate symbiotically. Excess heat from the data centre will be redirected to the energy park, where it will help dry olive pomace. The park is designed to process up to 12,900 tonnes of bio-waste each year across a five-hectare site, effectively transforming a disposal problem into an energy resource.
Inovapro, which specialises in rooftop solar systems, HVAC installations and other energy-related projects, is seeking co-financing from European Union funds to support the development.
The project reflects a broader trend of repurposing agricultural waste to meet the substantial energy demands of data centres, which require significant cooling and power infrastructure.
Croatia to build biomass-powered data centre using olive oil waste
