Nscale IPO plans face further uncertainty: Microsoft exits data center project.

PANews October 18 news, according to The Daily Telegraph, Microsoft (MSFT.O) has withdrawn from a data center partnership project with emerging UK cloud service provider Nscale in Lawford, Essex, UK. The move comes at a critical time as Nscale prepares for an IPO, adding further uncertainty to the startup's listing plans.

The report said Microsoft did not specify the reason for terminating the cooperation, but the project has been facing a series of delays. Local authorities have told Nscale that the facility is not expected to receive power until the 2030s. In addition, Nscale's flagship project in Norway is also about six months behind schedule, with only 6.4 megawatts of its planned 30-megawatt data center capacity currently in operation.

According to Nscale's IPO filing, about 85% of the company's contracts depend on Microsoft and Anthropic. Microsoft had originally planned to become the main tenant of Nscale's first UK data center in Essex. Microsoft's withdrawal will be a blow to Nscale, which is seeking to raise up to $3 billion through an IPO and could list as early as this month.