Sesterce Valence

Name: Sesterce Valence
Address: Rovaltain Business Park, rue René-Truhaut, Alixan, 26300, FR

Rovaltain Business Park, rue René-Truhaut, Alixan, 26300, FR

Metro: Valence, FR Country: France Region: Europe

Sesterce's AI campus at Alixan, in the Rovaltain business park beside the Valence TGV station in the Drôme, is stalled in court. The Tribunal administratif de Grenoble suspended its building permit on 10 July 2026 in emergency proceedings, finding serious doubt over the permit's legality because no environmental impact assessment had been carried out - the declared load having been kept below the 50 MW threshold that triggers one. Sesterce declared 40 MW; objectors put actual demand at 60 MW or more, and that gap is the substance of the case. The company has said it will appeal to the Conseil d'État. Announced in April 2025 with a first tranche of EUR 450 million, later reported at EUR 1.5 billion, the project was to hold 40,000 GPUs with closed-loop water cooling and waste-heat reuse, start construction that September and launch by the end of 2026. Counting hardware, the investment has been put as high as EUR 1.8 billion, and the scheme has drawn organised local opposition in the Drôme. Valence Romans Agglo is the partner authority.

Facility Specifications

Power & cooling

Cooling: Closed-loop water cooling with waste-heat reuse, as planned

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Location

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Frequently asked questions

What is the planning position at the Rovaltain site?

The building permit was suspended by the Grenoble administrative court on 10 July 2026, in what was reported as France's first emergency suspension of a data centre project. Sesterce has said it will appeal to the Conseil d'État.

Why was the Alixan permit suspended?

The court found serious doubt over its legality because no environmental impact assessment had been carried out; the declared load had been kept under the 50 MW threshold at which one becomes compulsory.

How much capacity was declared for the Valence project?

40 MW by Sesterce. Objectors argue the real demand is at least 60 MW, and that discrepancy is the core of the litigation, so no settled figure exists.

Who is Sesterce?

A French AI and GPU cloud company based in Marseille and formerly named Bitech, with a stated national target of 1.5 GW of compute across France by 2030.