The European Commission and a broad consortium of technology companies, Led by Telefónica, they have kicked off EURO-3C, a new digital infrastructure that aspires to become a central piece of the European technological sovereigntyThe announcement was made at Telefónica's stand during MWC26, placing the project in one of the most important international showcases for the sector.
EURO-3C is presented as the first major sovereign pan-European network that combines telecommunications, edge computingcloud services and artificial intelligence under a federated and open model. The ultimate goal is to accelerate the digital and industrial transformation of the continent, while strengthening the security, resilience and strategic autonomy of the European Union.
A strategic launch with a European touch
The official announcement took place this Monday in the Telefónica's stand at the Mobile World CongressThe event was attended by Renate Nikolay, Deputy Director-General of the European Commission, and Juan Montero, Director of Public Policy, Competition and Regulation at Telefónica. Both emphasized the strategic importance of this initiative for consolidating a common digital infrastructure in the EU.
From Brussels, the Commission emphasizes that EURO-3C is fully aligned with the priorities of the Political Programme for the Digital Decade 2030The project, which establishes as one of its pillars the availability of secure, sustainable digital infrastructure developed entirely in Europe, is funded through the Horizon Europe program, with a total budget of €75 million allocated to deploying and validating this network in real-world scenarios.
Renate Nikolay explained that the community institution It is firmly committed to secure digital communication infrastructures designed within European territory., with the idea of maximizing the convergence between telecommunications networks, edge environments and cloud services, supported by artificial intelligence. In his words, EURO-3C must bring together the efforts of a wide range of actors around a shared objective: to build a sovereign and reliable convergent communications ecosystem, serving both industry and citizens.
On behalf of Telefónica, Juan Montero emphasized that Technological sovereignty and industrial competitiveness have become top priorities for the European UnionAccording to him, having advanced infrastructure is not enough; close collaboration between sectors and countries is essential, with telecommunications playing a vital role as an enabler of other services and solutions. The discussion on technological sovereignty It was one of the topics discussed during the presentation.
Montero defined EURO-3C as A cooperative computing network at European scale that integrates operator capabilities, connectivity, edge nodes and cloud platformsAll of this is reinforced with artificial intelligence capabilities. In his view, this is a shared effort to consolidate Europe's industrial leadership and lay the foundations for true digital sovereignty in the long term.
Federated infrastructure and nodes distributed across Europe
The technical core of EURO-3C is based on a multi-operator and multi-vendor federated infrastructureDeployed in real-world production environments, the network will consist of more than 70 edge and cloud computing nodes distributed across more than 13 European countries, bringing digital services closer to users and industries, reducing latency, and improving performance.
Thanks to this architecture, the initiative aims to To offer advanced services with high levels of performance, interoperability, and securityThe network is designed to address critical needs in sectors such as connected automotive, fleet and transport management, the energy industry, and the public securityall of them with demanding requirements in reliability, response times and data protection.
The federated approach implies that The existing capabilities of different cloud operators and providers are integrated under a common European frameworkInstead of building a single centralized platform, EURO-3C links dispersed resources, respecting the diversity of actors but guaranteeing technical interoperability, shared governance rules and standards aligned with EU policies.
This model of cooperation between multiple agents fosters an ecosystem that is less dependent on external solutions and It allows for the preservation of sovereignty over key data and services.This is a particularly sensitive issue for regulated industrial sectors and public administrations. Data protection and privacy are central elements in this approach, as highlighted by European initiatives such as leaders in digital privacy.
Furthermore, the network incorporates advanced AI-powered orchestration features, which It will facilitate the automation of resource management, optimize workloads, and ensure a more efficient and resilient operation.These capabilities are essential for scaling the infrastructure and adapting it to new technological demands in the coming years.
Industrial use cases and focus on critical sectors
EURO-3C is not conceived as an isolated laboratory experiment, but as a production platform geared towards solving specific problems in European industryThe project will be supported by nine high-value business use cases, designed to demonstrate the technical feasibility of the model and its ability to be subsequently scaled up.
The planned areas of application include: automotive and transport, where low latency and high reliability are key They are fundamental for services such as connected vehicles, predictive maintenance, and advanced traffic management. Energy is another key field, with scenarios ranging from intelligent grid monitoring to the integration of renewables and flexibility solutions.
Public safety also appears as one of the priority areas, given that It requires particularly robust and secure infrastructure. to support critical communications, advanced video surveillance systems, real-time data analytics, and coordination between emergency services. The EURO-3C federated network is designed to reliably handle these types of workloads; initiatives focused on cyber defense and 5G complement this approach. in critical environments.
The convergence of telco, edge, cloud, and AI will enable the deployment Digital services that are closer to the end user and adapted to the particularities of each country or sectorwithout abandoning a common European framework. In this way, companies will be able to experiment with and scale innovative solutions while reducing costs and implementation times.
This practical approach, supported by concrete pilot projects, will help Validate interoperability between providers, refine governance models, and assess the real impact on productivity and competitivenessThese are key aspects for the initiative to consolidate itself as a benchmark in the European industrial fabric.
A pan-European consortium of more than 70 organizations
One of the distinctive features of EURO-3C is the breadth of its consortium, in which More than 70 entities from different links in the digital value chain are participating.It integrates telecommunications operators, cloud service providers, technology manufacturers, specialized SMEs, universities, research centers and large industrial companies.
This network of partners reflects a public-private partnership model designed to strengthen European technological capacity in key parts of the digital infrastructure. Cooperation between established companies and smaller players allows for combining industrial scale with agility and innovation, something especially relevant in fields such as distributed computing or applied artificial intelligence.
Telefónica assumes leadership of the consortium, but The project also involves operators and technology providers such as Vodafone, Ericsson and the Spanish SME Nearby Computingamong other prominent partners. Each participant brings expertise in specific areas, from networking and virtualization to edge computing platforms and intelligent management solutions.
During the presentation, Telefónica's digital director, Sebas Muriel, spoke to explain the strategic vision behind the initiative and the medium and long-term goals pursuedHis intervention was in addition to that of other representatives of the consortium, who detailed how they plan to contribute to the deployment and operation of this federated network.
The participation of universities and research centers ensures that EURO-3C incorporates a strong R&D dimension from the outsetThis can be crucial in anticipating future technological needs and in training specialized professionals capable of managing these types of complex infrastructures.
With this combination of actors, specific funding through Horizon Europe and strong alignment with the 2030 Digital Decade political agenda, EURO-3C is emerging as one of the EU's most ambitious initiatives to build a sovereign digital infrastructureThe project, geared towards industry, public services, and citizens, aims to demonstrate that multinational and multi-sectoral cooperation can translate into a more resilient, competitive network better adapted to Europe's needs in the coming years.
