THE GRID IS CONGESTED.
THE EQUIPMENT IS SCARCE.
THE PUBLIC PUSHES BACK.
WE VERIFY AND ACT ON THE GROUND.

Independent data center advisory and owner's representation, backed by named experts. From grid connection to local acceptance and crisis management, in France and across Europe.

Our offers

How an engagement runs: framing call, NDA, fixed fee →

Expert network · one contact, the right experts

Frédéric ArnaudFrédéric Arnaud

Founder & coordinator

Single point of contact: scopes each mission and brings in the right experts. Former PwC auditor and Hitachi Consulting consultant, fifteen years in general management.
Xavier WatrelosXavier Watrelos

HV grid connection & industrial projects

Engineer, 20+ years of industrial projects worth €5–100M, including HV and MV grid connections, commissioning and operating permits.
Anis MokdedAnis Mokded

Design, commissioning & operations

Engineer, 20+ years in mission-critical sites: led a certified Tier IV data center, then ran hyperscale and AI campuses of 100+ MW.
Nicolas GuillaumeNicolas Guillaume

Interconnection & fibre

Founder of a B2B telecom operator with an 800 km fibre network, former France-IX board member, 20+ years in digital infrastructure.
Jean-Yves EgidioJean-Yves Egidio

Construction health & safety (HSE)

HSE manager, nearly twenty years on industrial and energy sites: data center builds in Marseille, and a 500-person module yard in the UAE with 15 safety officers.
Francis GillardFrancis Gillard

Data center design & audits

Thirty years in HVAC, twenty in data centers: Accredited Tier Designer, design, audits and risk analyses up to 30 MW.
Alain ConstantinidisAlain Constantinidis

Data center operations & DORA

15+ years running Tier III and Tier IV rooms: operations audits, commissioning, room moves and DORA compliance.
Bertrand GriveletBertrand Grivelet

Battery storage & solar

Energy engineer: sizing, business cases and due diligence for solar and battery projects, mainland France and overseas.
Geoffrey GarrigaGeoffrey Garriga

Energy compliance & building services

Building services and energy engineer, 15+ years: tertiary decree, regulatory energy audits, BACS, HVAC and electrical design.
Blandine CazellesBlandine Cazelles

Crisis communication & public affairs

Founder of a network of senior crisis management experts. Former regional head of communications at La Poste, Senate chief of staff, IHEDN auditor.
Meet the network: ten fields of expertise → Join the network →
See all 81 situations and their expert →

Compute ordered ≠ compute installed.

What we cover

THE FIVE QUESTIONS THAT DECIDE A PROJECT

Power, land, demand, local acceptance, local benefits: a data center project is decided on these five questions. We help you answer them with verifiable facts.

01PowerIs a grid connection available, and when?02LandBrownfield, business park, landowner: what is the site worth?03DemandWho will use the capacity?04Local acceptanceWater, noise, heat, jobs: which figures to prepare?05Local benefitsTax, jobs, spillovers: what to expect?

You are: Project developer · Investor or lender · Landowner · Local authority · Operator

See also eight assignment examples, with deliverables and durations. New to the topic? What is a data center? Approached about your land? Selling or leasing land.

Our difference

The truth is on the ground

Software spots signals. At GridReadiness, we verify them.

Maps, databases and announcements tell you where to look. They do not tell you whether a substation can really be used, whether works are progressing or whether a date will hold. Our experts go and see, and read the original documents.

  • site and substation visits: equipment condition, nameplates, progress of works, posted permits
  • reading the original documents: connection studies and proposals, agreements, manufacturer quotes
  • the experience of people who have delivered grid connections, commissioning and construction
  • a written opinion that separates what is verified from what remains to be confirmed

Our offers

WHAT WE DO FOR YOU

For lenders and funds

Compute ordered ≠ compute installed

Credit has not disappeared, it is concentrating. At the end of October 2026, property company Merlin Properties raised €3.75bn, backed by its balance sheet and capacity already leased. Lenders are now sorting hard: what matters is no longer announced capacity, but capacity that will actually be connected, built and leased.

Lender due diligence →

What we check:

  • the connection documents: study, proposal, agreement, and what they really commit to
  • the tenant: who has signed, for what capacity, and what the site is worth if it leaves
  • the real schedule: critical path, high-voltage equipment, permits

Why credit is concentrating →

Time to ConnectWhat really sets your energisation date, and what can bring it forward.See the offer →Grid connection offer reviewStudy, PTF or connection agreement: know what holds before you sign or invest.See the offer →RTE PTF requestA complete, consistent file, followed through to the technical and financial proposal.See the offer →Site verificationDoes the announced power hold? Check on documents before a promise or letter of intent.See the offer →Brownfield and landWhat an industrial site's or a plot's megawatts are really worth.See the offer →Local authoritiesCheck an announced project and prepare the questions and safeguards to require, neutrally.See the offer →Capacity procurementRequirements, operator tender, comparison of offers. Paid by you alone.See the offer →Site readiness packA site checked by an independent third party before you sell or lease it.See the offer →
All our assignment examples →   Market intelligence →

Tools: energisation delay cost · usable IT capacity of a site · project readiness scorecard · PTF request checklist

Our principle: one side of the table

On any project, we work for one client only: the developer, the buyer, the lender or the local authority, never two of them. We take no commission, on equipment, land or capacity. Our fees are fixed and paid by the party we advise.

WHAT WE COMMIT TO

Recent assignments

Review of connection documents and the announced energisation date for a European data center developer, ahead of its investment decision. Audit of high-voltage equipment sourcing for a petrochemical group.

Independence

We do not design, build or sell equipment. No commission, no brokerage. Never on both sides of the same project.

Framework

Confidentiality agreement before any document. Professional liability insurance. Best-efforts obligation: only RTE and Enedis commit to capacity and a date.

Intelligence Library

LATEST ARTICLES

★ Flagship analysis · Lenders & developers

Compute ordered is not compute installed.
The banks now agree.

Jefferies, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs now measure the gap between chips sold and data centers delivered.

September 2026 · 8 min read

Read the analysis →

Hosting · Method

"AI-Ready": ten questions to ask before signing

October 2026 · 5 min

Analysis · Financing

The neocloud credit squeeze: what it would change for sites in France

October 2026 · 6 min

Analysis · Financing

Stranded compute: when GPUs arrive before the grid

October 2026 · 5 min

Our quarterly index: European transformer lead times, Q3 2026 (PDF) · all our publications

DESCRIBE YOUR SITUATION

A few lines are enough: the project, the document or decision at stake, and your deadline. We come back to you to set up a first conversation.

First conversation confidential and with no commitment. Fixed fees proposed in writing before any assignment. Best-efforts obligation.

FAQ

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is GridReadiness?

GridReadiness is a data center consulting and owner's representative pure player in France and Europe, independent from design and construction and backed by an expert network, from grid connection to crisis management. Led by Frédéric Arnaud, the client's single point of contact, it covers site selection and preparation, RTE and Enedis connection, the design brief and engineering procurement, project steering, commissioning, operations audits, lender due diligence and support for public bodies, bringing in independent experts as each mission requires.

How long does a data center grid connection take in France?

For a large load, several years. The timeline depends mainly on the connection document obtained (exploratory study, accepted offer or signed agreement), the grid works required and their permits, and high-voltage equipment lead times. RTE's fast-track HTB3 procedure targets three to four years for 400 MW to 1 GW on selected sites.

Who does GridReadiness work for?

Data center developers and operators, EPC contractors and electrical integrators, infrastructure funds, lenders, battery storage developers, and the municipalities and public bodies hosting a project. Never, on the same project, for both the developer and the host community.

How does GridReadiness stay independent?

We take no commission on equipment or site transactions, we never act for both sides of the same project, and every mission is scoped in writing (scope, deliverables, timing) before it starts. If one of our experts is on assignment with a developer or an EPC contractor, we do not carry out the due diligence of that same project for a lender, nor support the host community on it.