Minister says Estonia consulting security agencies over Nebius AI plant

Estonia has consulted its security agencies about risks linked to Nebius, the Dutch cloud company with Russian roots that is due to start operating an AI plant at the Greenergy Data Centers facility in Harku parish this year, Minister of Economic Affairs and Industry Erkki Keldo said, according to ERR.

Keldo said the government was aware of questions surrounding Nebius and the workforce at the planned facility and was working to minimise potential risks.

“On the one hand, these cutting edge investments are certainly very welcome in Estonia, but on the other hand, it is the government’s duty to look at the broader security picture,” Keldo said. “We are aware of the background and are also in contact with Estonian agencies. We will certainly minimise the risks.”

He said the project was a private investment, but potential security risks still had to be addressed. If questions arise about the company’s background or its employees, existing rules and the security agencies can be used, he added.

“We must ensure that sensitive data, sensitive sectors and sensitive technologies do not, for example, end up in the hands of risk countries,” Keldo said. He added that authorities had to monitor whose technology was used to store and process data and where that data was held.

Keldo said the Nebius issue was also discussed by the government cabinet on Thursday and would remain under discussion in the coming weeks. He said Estonia was more cautious than some other European countries about companies with Russian backgrounds or contacts, and that this approach would continue.

ERR reported on Wednesday that Nebius is due to begin operating an AI plant at the Greenergy Data Centers data centre in Harku this year. With a capacity of 22 megawatts, the Tallinn AI plant will be the largest of its kind in the Baltic states.

Nebius sold its Russian business units in 2024 and adopted the name Nebius Group. The company is headquartered in the Netherlands. Its chief executive, Arkady Volozh, is one of Yandex’s founders but has since renounced his Russian citizenship.

Postimees reported that Nebius’s background had alarmed security experts. Although the company has officially severed its ties with Russia, the newspaper said it carries a historical legacy of cooperation with Russia’s Federal Security Service.

A Greenergy representative said last month that such labelling was inappropriate, arguing that Nebius was likely one of the most thoroughly scrutinised organisations because, despite its former connection to Russia, it had won the trust of Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, the US government and the New York Stock Exchange.