Russian businesses and the Ministry of Digital Development are discussing the possibility of locating artificial intelligence data centres in “friendly” countries. Belarus and Kazakhstan are among the potential locations.
RBC reported on the consultations on October 8, citing sources. Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development confirmed that the discussions were taking place in the context of international technological cooperation.
The issue is being considered by a working group of the government subcommission on AI development, but no specific decisions have yet been made regarding countries, sites or project parameters.
Belarusian authorities have previously said they are ready to host such projects. In March, National Bank Board Chairman Raman Halouchanka proposed using the electricity surplus to attract investors interested in locating data centres, including facilities for artificial intelligence applications.
Halouchanka pointed to growing electricity demand from computing infrastructure and a shortage of capacity in European Russia, particularly around major cities. At the same time, he acknowledged that implementing such projects would require additional investment in Belarusian energy infrastructure, including electricity transmission capacity.
RBC’s report was published on October 8, the day an attack on a Yandex data centre in Sasovo, Ryazan Region, became known. Following damage and a fire, the facility’s operations were completely halted. On the morning of October 9, the company’s data centre in Kaluga was also targeted.
During the night of October 11, infrastructure at another Yandex data centre, in Vladimir, was damaged. The company reported that operations had been completely suspended and advised customers to activate alternative disaster recovery plans. The disruptions also affected users in Belarus, who reported that the Yandex Go taxi-booking service was unavailable.