# Microsoft Drops Essex AI Data Center

> Microsoft exits UK AI project as power grid delays hit.
- Title: Microsoft Drops Essex AI Data Center · Startup Fortune
- Summary: Microsoft exits UK AI project as power grid delays hit. Microsoft abandoned its £2 billion Essex AI data center deal with Nscale due to UK power grid delays…
- Keywords: microsoft, nscale, essex, uk power grid, ai data center, nvidia gb300, azure cloud, startups, business, Drops, Data, Center
- Source: Startup Fortune — https://startupfortune.com/microsoft-walks-away-from-essex-ai-data-center-as-uk-power-fails-it-again
- Published: 2026-10-19T13:25:52+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: microsoft, nscale, essex, uk power grid, ai data center, nvidia gb300, azure cloud, startups, business
## Microsoft cancels Essex AI deal
Microsoft scrapped its £2 billion data center project with Nscale in Loughton, Essex, after UK power grid delays.
## Power grid delays
UK power grid won't be ready until the 2030s, killing the project's timeline for 2027.
## Project timeline dead
The Loughton site was meant to house 23,000 Nvidia GB300 chips and start feeding Microsoft's Azure cloud by early 2027.
## Nscale's other contracts
Nscale's other Microsoft contracts in Norway, Portugal, and the US remain intact.
## Iren's Texas project
Microsoft's Texas data center with IREN delivered its first facility on schedule in August 2026.
## Power as the constraint
Power access, not chip supply or capital, is the main constraint on AI data center growth.
## Microsoft's Maia chips
Microsoft is producing its own Maia 200 chips to cut Nvidia's cut.
## Key takeaway

Microsoft abandoned its £2 billion Essex AI data center deal with Nscale due to UK power grid delays, which won't be ready until the 2030s.