Putin Orders Private Russian Data Centers to Reserve 10% of Capacity for State Use

The Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, ordered privately owned data centers in Russia to reserve 10% of their capacity for supporting Russian information resources, Astra reported on November 2.

According to Astra, the decree was published on Russia’s official legal information portal and gives privately operated data centers 10 days to comply. The reserved capacity can continue to be used by its owners, but a special government subcommission will be able to order that it be made available for Russian information resources within 24 hours.

Ukraine has also repeatedly targeted Russia’s digital infrastructure. In October, Ukrainian strikes, launched in response to Russian attacks on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure, hit three Yandex data centers in Russia. This disrupted cloud services, data storage, databases, and other online systems, with Russian bot activity later dropping sharply.

The decree specifies that access to the reserved computing capacity will be paid, with prices capped at a level determined by the subcommission. The Russian government was instructed to establish the body and determine how decisions on allocating the capacity will be made.

Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development was tasked with assessing available space and computing capacity at domestic data centers and setting requirements for reliable and uninterrupted operation, Astra noted.

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The decree also allows Russian information resources to temporarily use computing capacity at data centers outside Russia. Such decisions will require approval from the Federal Security Service  (FSB).

Russia has also been exploring new data-center projects with the US. On October 16, Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev stated that the two countries were discussing joint data infrastructure initiatives, including the possible use of Russian nuclear power capacity to support them.

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