Microsoft has reportedly ditched plans for a data center in Prague in the Czech Republic.

E15 reports the cloud giant is set to cancel plans for a data center in the capital city due to "complex bureaucracy and long wait times for decisions."

"A certain small hope is still alive, but rather it is wishful thinking of the managers of the domestic branch of Microsoft," according to one unnamed source.

Microsoft bought land in the Czech capital last year. The company acquired plots totaling 7 hectares in Prague's Klíčov district from the CPI group of billionaire Radovan Vítek for 1.5 billion crowns ($64.5 million).

"In connection with the purchase of the land, we currently have no further information. We can confirm our continued determination to strengthen the digital transformation of the Czech Republic through Microsoft's cloud services," the company said at the time.

The acquired land was previously earmarked for offices, retail, warehouses, and a hotel. Microsoft had reportedly planned to invest 5.5 billion crowns ($236.5 million) in the site, though campus specifications were unclear.

E15 said Microsoft has ‘run out of patience’ due to ambiguities surrounding the spatial plan, long construction procedures, and the energy situation.

"Legislative requirements for the construction and operation of a data center are so strict that it is unmatched by any other country in the world," another source said.

"We have no new information to share," Microsoft told the publication.

"This is not the first large investor to lose interest in developing his land in Prague due to ambiguities surrounding the spatial plan, which is under the responsibility of the capital city," said Jiří Janák, Prague 9 councilor for territorial development. "This uncertainty is reflected in the fact that investors are gradually leaving Prague and the Czech Republic and moving their investments to neighboring states that have a predictable city development policy.”

Zdeněk Zajíček, president of the Czech Chamber of Commerce, added: "If we don't send a clear signal to investors that we care about them, they will go elsewhere. For example to Poland or Romania.”

Microsoft launched a Polish Azure cloud region in April 2023.