The CEO of ACS, Juan Santamaría, has said this Thursday that the company is progressing "at a faster pace than expected" in the deployment of its data centers in Spain and that the Alcalá de Henares complex (Madrid) will be the first to come into service, something the company expects to materialize in the coming months.
At the same time, he has admitted the "increase in spending" resulting from the new government decree for the sector and has indicated that he detects "new opportunities" in Europe and in Spain in the field of infrastructure, a scenario that, in his view, will remain regardless of the outcome of the general elections of 29 November.
On the other hand, he has assured that he feels "very comfortable" with the context in the United States following the latest midterm elections in relation to the construction of 'data centers' and has reaffirmed the group's goal of closing 2026 with an operating net profit of up to 1,155 million euros, which would imply an uptick of up to 35%.
Data centers in Spain
Santamaría has clarified that the data center in Alcalá de Henares, in the Community of Madrid, will be the first installation that ACS will put into operation in Spain and has said that they are in "very advanced" talks for its commercialization: "We believe that we will be able to close it in the coming months," he said.
During the presentation of the results for the first nine months of 2026, he was asked about the draft Royal Decree that sets the requirements for energy, environmental and resilience and digital sovereignty for data centers. On this point, he indicated that it "differs very little" from other frameworks already in force in different countries and that "everyone wants to ensure full sustainability" of data processing centers (CPD).
In his analysis, he explained that this regulation implies securing an extra volume of energy and "in the end, it is an increase in spending," although he emphasized that it is essential to prevent that additional cost from being passed on to consumers and that the company intends to use "the highest possible number of renewable energies."
"On the other hand, in the case of putting a plant into operation, we will have to ensure that it is less than five years old. Is it viable? Yes. Are they more costly? Also. Therefore, the key question is how costly they are compared with other countries, because in the end we are talking about a competition, because energy prices in Spain are still lower," the executive has said.
"We have a platform in Spain and we are going to continue commercializing these projects over the next few months; we have been doing it and everything has advanced at a faster pace than initially expected," he added.
"Unprecedented supercycle" in infrastructures
In the domestic sphere, Santamaría also responded to a question about the general elections of November 29, in which he said he perceives "no risk".
In this context, he described that the infrastructure business is living a "supercycle of investments without precedents". "Infrastructures are the new gold where we are going to venture. We are perfectly positioned to benefit from that growth," he said during the presentation of results and the Capital Markets Day.
He also highlighted that "Spain is not an exception when we talk about infrastructure needs out there. They are becoming obsolete, there are new industrial capabilities, CPDs, the electrification of vehicles, new laboratories, semiconductor programs..., all of this is happening in Europe."
As he pointed out, "we believe there will be new opportunities in Europe for several years and I think we will be able to visualize them and that this will likely happen over the course of next year," with a greater focus on Germany and on Eastern Europe.
"And without a doubt Spain will follow this trend. However, this will happen regardless of who is elected in the next general elections" that the country will hold, he stressed, the top executive of the construction and infrastructure group.
Democratic victory in the US and growth plans
With regard to data centers, Santamaría stated that he feels "very comfortable" with the outcome of the 'midterms' in the United States, which ended with a Democratic victory and changes in states such as Ohio, Georgia and Texas.
In this regard, he has been shown to be convinced that the developments currently under execution phase "will not be stopped". "We do not believe that the creation of those CPDs will be canceled, but obviously there could be some kind of restriction or delay in the permits, and that is something we have accounted for. At this moment we are meeting with clients, but the question is not whether they are going to be built or not, but where they are going to be created," he has clarified.
"We do not consider that there is opposition on the part of the new governors; simply that they want to do it with greater caution, analyzing all the considerations in terms of digital transformation and sustainability," the chief executive officer of the company chaired by Florentino Pérez concluded.
Lastly, Santamaría has revealed that the group is driving a global platform specialized in the nuclear sector and is configuring a new division of energy, water and industry, and has highlighted the "solid" results obtained in the first nine months of the year, with an acceleration in profit growth, good cash generation and strong market support.
The ACS Group recorded a net attributable profit of 789 million euros through September, 20.5% more, while the net business figure increased by 12.3% year-on-year, to 41,262 million euros, and operating gross result (Ebitda) reached 2,506 million, 13% more than a year earlier.
During the Capital Markets Day, it also highlighted the resilience and the company's "enormous diversification" by geographies and sectors, with 90% of contracts that "have no risk"; some "very robust" operating cash flows, which will allow M&A operations, investments in 'greenfield' projects and assets that generate recurring Ebitda and dividends; and some "very ambitious" targets that, as he said, "ensure growth in the future".