Google data center site in Finland. Image credit: X (Twitter) Google has been told to halt work on two data centers in Europe. The tech giant has been ordered to suspend construction work on projects in Finland, a country increasingly known as the “Texas of Europe” for attracting large data center investments. The Finnish Licensing and Supervision Agency (LVV) issued the order to Google subsidiary Tuike Finland Oy, saying work must stop until it completes environmental impact assessments.Google acknowledged “concerns” about the work and said it fell short of its own standards. “We understand the concerns and have fallen short of our own high standards in this instance,” a Google spokesperson told CNBC, adding that the company would follow the LVV’s guidance. Google also said it is advancing biodiversity plans for the region, including tree planting across 130 hectares at Muhos. Google ordered to halt data center work The LVV issued the notice on Tuesday, covering data center projects planned for Muhos and Kajaani. Google must halt the specified construction activities by October 23.The suspension applies to activities including tree removal, topsoil removal, excavation, quarrying, crushing, moving soil, ditching and construction of roads and storage areas. The order does not cover planning, measurements, soil surveys or other activities with minor impacts that can be easily restored.Tommi Muilu, head of the environmental department at the Finnish licensing and supervision authority, said the work could affect the environment before the assessment process was completed. “In our opinion, the measures in question will change the environment and cause impacts, the identification and assessment of which are among the key objectives of the EIA procedure,” Muilu said. Google says it will follow the guidance Google said it had carried out nature surveys and taken steps to protect areas it considered to have high environmental value.“We acted in good faith under the Forestry Act, and ran nature surveys and put in place measures to protect high-value areas,” the company spokesperson said. “As we continue our long-term work in the region, we are advancing our landscaping and biodiversity plans, which include tree planting across 130 hectares at Muhos.”The company said it would follow the authority’s guidance as it continues work on its broader plans. Why Finland is called the 'Texas of Europe' Finland has emerged as an important destination for data center projects as demand for computing infrastructure rises with the growth of AI. The country offers available land and power at a time when electricity capacity is increasingly constrained in several parts of Europe.Several data center projects with potential capacities of hundreds of megawatts have been announced in Finland, contributing to its “Texas of Europe” nickname.Texas has become one of the major locations for AI data centers in the US, with companies including Google, Meta, Microsoft and Anthropic announcing large infrastructure projects there. Google's $15 billion Finland investment The suspension comes about a month after Google announced plans to invest $15 billion in Finland through 2028. The company said the investment would go towards data centers and supporting infrastructure, including energy projects.The planned spending would represent Google's largest investment in Europe. The company has not indicated that the latest suspension changes its long-term investment plans in Finland.