TikTok announced a €1 billion investment to establish its first data center in Finland, marking a development in the company’s Project Clover initiative. The facility, to be built in Kouvola by local developer HyperCo Oy, adds to TikTok’s growing European data infrastructure network.

The Finland data center forms part of TikTok’s broader €12 billion Project Clover initiative, which aims to enhance data protection for its 175 million European users. The new facility will support the default storage of European user data within what the company calls its “European Enclave.”

“We welcome TikTok to Kouvola. This is a significant investment that strengthens the City of Kouvola’s position as a developing regional center,” Marita Toikka, Mayor of Kouvola, said in an announcement, highlighting the economic benefits including new jobs and long-term regional development.

Project Clover Implementation Progress

This announcement follows the recent activation of TikTok’s Norwegian data center last fall. The company previously launched an Irish data center in 2023, establishing a network of facilities across Europe designed to store data from users in EEA countries, the UK, and Switzerland.

NCC Group, a global cybersecurity firm, provides independent monitoring of Project Clover’s security measures. Their oversight includes verification of data controls, monitoring of data flows, and reporting of anomalies within the system.

TikTok reports implementing strict access controls enforced by security gateways to ensure employees in China have no access to restricted European user data, such as phone numbers or IP addresses. The company has also deployed privacy-enhancing technologies to de-identify certain data that requires global processing.

Regulatory Challenges

The Irish Data Protection Commission recently fined TikTok €530 million over concerns regarding personal data transfers to China and transparency failures. The regulator determined that TikTok violated the GDPR by failing to “verify, guarantee and demonstrate” adequate protection for EU users’ data accessed by China-based staff.

TikTok contests these findings and plans to appeal, arguing that the decision does not fully consider security measures implemented since 2023, including the European data centers established under Project Clover.

The company disclosed in April 2025 that limited EU user data had been discovered on Chinese servers in February, contradicting previous statements that no EU user data was stored in China. TikTok reports this data has since been deleted.