The European Commission is strengthening the EU’s digital sovereignty by awarding a tender for sovereign cloud services worth up to €180 million over six years. The four chosen providers are European companies: Post Telecom with CleverCloud and OVHcloud; STACKIT; Scaleway; and Proximus, partnering with S3NS (a Thales and Google Cloud joint venture), Clarence, and Mistral.
Launched under the Cloud III Dynamic Purchasing System in October 2025, this tender supports the Commission’s goal of reinforcing strategic control over key technologies. Providers were selected based on their alignment with the Cloud Sovereignty Framework, which evaluates strategic, legal, operational, and environmental factors, as well as supply chain transparency and compliance with EU laws.
To maintain diversification and resilience, contracts were awarded to four providers simultaneously, ensuring limited reliance on any single entity. Providers had to meet strict assurance levels to restrict non-EU control over their technologies. This initiative promotes large-scale use of the EU cloud to enhance digital sovereignty.
By establishing a benchmark for sovereign cloud services, the Commission encourages compliance with European standards, showcases the high quality of European providers, and illustrates that non-European technologies can meet sovereignty requirements when operated within a strict framework.
The Commission is finalising an updated Cloud Sovereignty Framework that will establish criteria for sovereignty assessments to help entities adopt its approach. It is also adapting these criteria to enhance sovereignty in its digital services.
Additionally, the Commission is preparing the Tech Sovereignty Package, which includes the Open Source Strategy, Chips Act 2, Strategic Roadmap for Digitalisation and AI in Energy, and the Cloud and AI Development Act (CADA). The CADA will standardise the definition of sovereignty for cloud and AI services across the single market, expand opportunities for sovereign cloud offerings, and support a broader range of service providers entering the market.
