Shaping the Mediterranean Gateway to Europe: Undersea Cables, Data Centers, and the Politics of Digital Growth

Between 2018 and 2024, Digital Realty constructed or initiated plans for four data centers with a combined capacity of 87 MW at the Marseille-Fos Port, an industrial port located on the northern coast of Marseille, France. The port promoted the development of digital infrastructure as a strategy to diversify its revenue streams amid a significant decline in oil exports, while also seizing the opportunity presented by the city’s rapidly growing status in global data exchanges. Over the past decade, Marseille has ascended from 44th to 5th place among the world’s most connected cities. This new status has garnered particular interest from the port's regulatory body, the French government, which aims to transform the site into a strategic asset for enhancing national digital sovereignty. This infrastructural growth is profoundly reshaping the relationship between the port and its many neighbors. It is viewed as an opportunity for a maritime nature park to redirect undersea cables that have traditionally traversed its protected area. However, it has also sparked outrage among citizens who perceive data centers as appropriating energy that should have been allocated to powering polluting maritime activities. Additionally, local elected officials are concerned about the potential development of large data centers on their territory, especially as the port has no remaining available land. This communication will document the contested politics surrounding the development of digital infrastructures in Marseille, analyzing how these conflicts challenge the territorial roles of an industrial harbor in the context of climate change.