Data Center Investment News — 02/05/2025
Princeton Digital Group unveils billion dollar AI data centre near Tokyo
A new data centre just outside Tokyo, Japan has been unveiled by Princeton Digital Group (PDG). The TY1 campus in Saitama city is a US$1 billion investment built to meet the demand for AI infrastructure in the region.
Delivering 140 KW per rack across 96 MW of IT capacity, the TY1 data centre facility is designed specifically for high-performance computing. It is considered one of the largest data centres in Japan and aims to fill a widening gap as space, power, and connectivity in central Tokyo reach their limits.
“AI has reshaped the data centre landscape, driving demand for advanced infrastructure across Asia. Our US$1 billion investment in TY1 demonstrates our commitment to Japan as part of our Pan-Asia growth strategy,” said Rangu Salgame, chairman, chief executive officer, and co-founder of PDG.
“Saitama offers scalable resources that address constraints faced in traditional hubs. With industry-leading power density and sustainability, TY1 further strengthens PDG’s position as the partner of choice for hyperscalers deploying AI workloads in the region.”
The data centre facility is located 35 km north of Tokyo. With its access to scalable land, reliable power, and high-speed fibre, the region has become a pressure valve for the capital’s digital congestion, as demand from hyperscalers and AI-heavy workloads skyrockets.
PLDT doubles down on data centre as Philippines races to catch up
Filipino telecoms giant PLDT Inc (PSE: TEL) plans to build a new data centrenext year, as part of its broader target to scale capacity by up to 500 megawatts (MW).
Victor Genuino, president and CEO of the company’s data centre arm, ePLDT, told local press that the firm will finalise the design for what will be its 12th facility later this year. The site is expected to have a capacity of up to 100 MW.
Construction is expected to take around two years, with completion expected in 2028.
The facility will be developed on a 20-hectare site in General Trias, Cavite, though only half the area will be utilised, according to PLDT chairman Manuel Pangilinan.
It will be built in five phases of 20 MW each, with a total estimated cost of PHP 40 billion (US$708.15 million). This is twice the investment for PLDT’s 11th site, Vitro Sta. Rosa (VSR).
PLDT officials and President Marcos on Wednesday inaugurated the VSR facility, which has been operational since July 2024. Located in Laguna, VSR has a total capacity of 50 MW and includes 18 data halls, two of which are currently fully occupied, each delivering 2 MW.
PLDT offers a wide range of telecom and digital services, including fixed-line, wireless, voice, video, and data services.
ESR and STACK break ground on 72MW data centre campus in Japan’s Kansai region
ESR Group Limited (SEHK: 1821) and STACK Infrastructure have begun construction on a data centre development in Japan’s Kansai region.
The project will eventually offer 72 MW of IT capacity across a multi-phase campus, and is located in Keihanna science city. The first phase, a facility known as KIX01A with 18 MW of capacity, is now under construction and is scheduled to be operational by the second quarter of 2027.
“Building large-scale campus developments is a unique capability of ESR through our deep in-market expertise in accessing land and power and long-term commitment to collaborate with the local community to maximise positive impact for all stakeholders,” said Stuart Gibson, ESR group co-founder and co-CEO.
“By combining our strengths and capabilities with STACK, we can meet our hyperscale customers’ needs in a high-growth market and drive value for our investors.”
Elsewhere, ESR and STACK also have a 48 MW data centre development underway in Incheon, South Korea.
Viettel kicks off Vietnam’s major 140MW data centre project in Ho Chi Minh City
Vietnam’s state-owned mobile network operator Viettel has started building a new data centre campus in Ho Chi Minh City. This will be the company’s 16th data centre, designed to deliver 140 megawatts (MW) of capacity and house around 10,000 racks.
Being developed on a 4-hectare site, Viettel’s new data centre is being built to meet Uptime Tier III international standards. This means it can keep running during maintenance without interrupting operations and is designed for minimal downtime.
It will have an average power density of 10kW per rack, which is about 2.5 times higher than the typical rate in Vietnam, and some racks able to support up to 60kW, according to Huyen Nguyen, Viettel’s deputy director of international business.
This capacity is aimed at supporting high-performance computing needs, especially for large AI models and applications. The facility is designed for a Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of under 1.4. Phase 1 is scheduled to begin operations in the first quarter of 2026, with full completion expected before 2030.
Viettel has ambitious plans to develop the country’s digital infrastructure. Last year, the company said it wants to add 450MW of data centre capacity, four subsea cables to Vietnam by 2030. The company will also launch 5G services in all 63 of Vietnam’s provinces and cities this month, after hitting a 95% 4G coverage milestone.
CtrlS Datacenters to invest US$59 million in new facility in Madhya Pradesh
CtrlS Datacenters, a Hyderabad-headquartered data centre operator, plans to invest INR 500 crore (approximately US$59 million) to develop a facility at Badwai IT Park in Madhya Pradesh, central India.
The new facility will support cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and data processing.
“We chose Madhya Pradesh for its visionary leadership in fostering an enabling business and policy environment, a strategic location that can act as a digital crossroads for Central India and untapped potential as a technology talent hub,” said Sridhar Pinnapureddy, Chairman of CtrlS Datacenters.
Established in 2007, CtrlS Datacenters operates 15 facilities across eight key cities in India. It has a nationwide footprint with a combined data centre capacity of 250 megawatts (IT load).
The company also plans to expand internationally, with Southeast Asia and the Middle East as target regions, starting with Thailand as its first overseas market.
TikTok parent company eyes 900MW data centre project in Brazil
ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of TikTok, is considering a multi-billion-dollar investment in a data centre project in Brazil, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The company is reportedly in discussions with renewable energy producer Casa dos Ventos to develop a facility in the Pecem port complex, located in the state of Ceará on Brazil’s northeast coast, the people told Reuters.
The potential investment comes as Brazil aims to establish itself as a global hub for the rapidly expanding data centre industry, capitalising on its renewable energy resources.
Sources, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the confidential nature of the negotiations, revealed that initial talks are centred around a 300-megawatt (MW) data centre. However, the project could potentially expand to 900 MW in a second phase. One source suggested that the total power demand for the project might approach 1 gigawatt.
The scale of the proposed investment is in tandem with ByteDance’s global infrastructure rollout. In February, the company announced plans to invest US$8.8 billion in data centres in Thailand over a five-year period.
Brazilian project, if realised, would represent a significant pillar of ByteDance’s operations in the Americas.
Apollo to acquire STACK’s European colocation assets in carve-out deal
Apollo Global Management (NYSE: APO) has agreed to acquire the European colocation business of STACK Infrastructure in a carve-out transaction.
The deal will see Apollo-managed infrastructure funds take ownership of seven data centre facilities located across five European cities, including Stockholm, Oslo, Copenhagen, Milan, and Geneva. These facilities serve a range of enterprise clients, including telecommunications providers, IT firms, and financial institutions.
The colocation assets were originally developed and operated by STACK Infrastructure, a portfolio company of Blue Owl Digital Infrastructure Advisors (BODI).
Following the acquisition, the European colocation business will operate as a standalone company under a new brand.
“We are delighted to partner with Apollo to accelerate growth of our business as a new, standalone company,” said Sherif Rizkalla, CEO of the company.
Microsoft plans to boost European data centre capacity by 40% over next two years
Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) President Brad Smith has published a blog post in which he commits to increasing European data centre capacity by 40%.
The post is a response to rising tensions between the US and Europe that have been simmering since President Trump returned to the White House just over 100 days ago.
In a bid to reassure European cloud customers that it’s still a suitable and reliable option, Microsoft has laid out five commitments to Europe that it hopes will prevent a switch.
These appear to be aimed at both enterprises and governments.
The ambition to increase data centre capacity by 40% in Europe comes under the first of these commitments: “building a broad AI and cloud ecosystem across Europe.”
The 40% increase would see over 200 Microsoft data centres hosting cloud operations, and a 50% increase by 2027 against 2023 capacity levels.
Microsoft is already expanding its data centre infrastructure in 16 countries, and despite recent reports of pausing some projects still expects to spend US$80 billion in 2025 alone.
Khazna to build 100 MW data centre in Ankara as UAE-Turkey tech ties deepe
Data centre operator Khazna Data Centers has announced plans to build an AI data centre in Ankara, Turkey, with a potential capacity of up to 100 MW.
The site is secured in Başkent Organised Industrial Zone (OIZ), and is part of the company’s ongoing expansion into new digital infrastructure markets.
According to Stanford University’s Artificial Intelligence Index 2025, the country saw a 198% rise in AI talent concentration between 2016 and 2024.
The development comes a week after the company announced two new data centre facilities in the UAE, both located in Abu Dhabi.
The announcement also follows a series of economic agreements signed in 2023 between Turkey and the UAE, reportedly worth over US$50 billion.
The planned data centre in Ankara is designed to support a range of computing needs, including AI, cloud, and other workloads. The company said that its modular construction will allow for future expansion and adaptation to emerging technologies.
NOVA Infrastructure takes majority stake in DartPoints with $250M investment
NOVA Infrastructure has acquired a majority stake in DartPoints, a data centre operator serving enterprise clients across the U.S. The investment includes over US$250 million in combined equity and debt funding from NOVA and Orion Infrastructure Capital (OIC).
DartPoints currently operates 11 data centres across 10 U.S. markets in states including South Carolina, North Carolina, Ohio, Indiana, and Louisiana. As part of the deal, DartPoints also acquired the real estate associated with three of its data centres located in Greenville, Baton Rouge, and Asheville.
“We’re excited to partner with a best-in-class data centre management team and platform serving a diverse and growing base of enterprise customers,” said Chris Beall, managing partner at NOVA.
“We look forward to growing the business and capitalising on the significant opportunity in DartPoints’ target markets, which benefit from shifting demand trends and the decentralisation of digital workloads.”
DartPoints said it plans to increase control over its assets and expand its services into more regional markets, starting with this deal.
Germany’s Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe launches new data center platform
German investment bank Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe Privatbank has launched a new data center firm. The real estate investment management of Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe Privatbank (aka HAL REIM) has now established a platform for the development of data centers in Germany: HAL Data Center Development (HAL DCD).
A wholly owned subsidiary of Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe Privatbank, HAL DCD will offer services around data center development, including acquisition, planning, financing, construction, and leasing. The company said the new platform will open up entry into the German market for international investors.
As well as HAL’s existing properties within the company’s in-house data center fund, HAL DCD will mainly focus on the development of turnkey data centers with 10MW of IT capacity or more. Details of any planned data centers were not shared.
“The newly established platform combines the expertise for data centers with asset management, structuring experience, access to the operators, access to different sources of capital, and project development experience,” said Patrick Brinker, head of real estate investment management at Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe. “The aim as operating partners is to bring together all stakeholders such as landowners, operators, authorities, electricity and network operators, financiers, and investors.”
Peter Pohlschröder has been appointed managing director of HAL DCD and co-head of digital infrastructure at Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe Privatbank.
Valore Group applies to build data center in Iver, UK
Another data center campus has been proposed outside London in Iver, Buckinghamshire.
First reported by the Bucks Free Press, Sequence (Iver) UK Ltd has asked Buckinghamshire Council for an environmental impact assessment of its plans. The proposed project would see the redevelopment of a former landfill site to host a data center and substation.
The 16.5-hectare site, located east of the M25 along Slough Road (A4007), is just south of the Iver Substation. The company is proposing a two-story, 15,490 sqm (166,755 sq ft) building offering 48MW of IT capacity, as well as a 150MW substation.
The site was historically used as a landfill for the disposal of waste materials.
Sequence (Iver) UK Ltd is a joint venture between Astra Partners Ltd and Valore Group.
Founded in 2013, Valore Group is an owner, investor, and operator of real estate. Companies within the group include investment manager Valore Capital Partners and Valore Ventures
Belltown Power to develop six data centers in North Texas
US renewable energy developer Belltown Power Texas has announced six new data center developments across North Texas. The projects will have a combined capacity of 1.435GW and represent the company’s first in the US market.
The data center sites are located close to major transmission hubs and the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, which Belltown says will provide the facilities with rapid interconnection options and scalability for hyperscale and AI‑driven operations.
Belltown has secured committed capacity for one 15MW facility already, with the remaining five currently advancing through the study phase with local utility partners. Construction timelines and the exact capacity of each facility were not disclosed.
The company aims to complement the data centers with green‑field utility-scale solar and battery storage. The bulk of the company’s renewable projects are located in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, with 50 projects in operation and in development. In total, the company has a development pipeline of 4.6GW and more than 3GW of capacity in operation or under construction.
Belltown was originally launched in the UK, and according to its website, has developed more than 23 projects across the country
Hive Digital completes 100MW Bitcoin data center in Paraguay
Data center infrastructure firm, Hive Digital, has announced the completion of its 100MW Bitcoin mining data center in Yguazù, Paraguay.
The Yguazù site is currently pulling 200 PHps from Hive’s proprietary buzz miners, with 8,000 of the machines set to go online by the end of the month. The firm also expects to take delivery of Bitmain’s dedicated S21+ Bitcoin mining rigs at the same time.
“We aim to reach 25 EHps by Fall 2025, producing over 12 Bitcoins daily at current difficulty levels. With our Paraguay site energized and racking underway, Hive is positioned for a transformative year of growth,” said Luke Rossy, chief operating officer of Hive.
“As of March 31, we secured deposits for 4.3 EHps of Bitmain S21+ miners, funded through disciplined treasury management. Our fiscal year-end marked a strategic pivot — no debt, just smart execution. Our expansion from 6.5 EHps to 11.5 EHps has been paid and we’re moving fast,” added Aydin Kilic, president & CEO of Hive.
According to the firm’s March production results, the partly energized Yguazù site mined 108 Bitcoins during March alone. The firm’s total Bitcoin holdings stand at 2,201 BTC, worth approximately $180 million based on recent prices.
Hive acquired the in-development Yguazù site from Bitfarms in January in a deal worth $56 million. The site can reportedly reach 200MW, with the second 100MW phase due to launch later this year.With the Yguazù site now underway, Hive’s global crypto mining footprint is set to expand to 430MW, with sites located in Paraguay, Canada, and Sweden.
Data center campus totaling up to 1GW proposed for North Lincolnshire, UK
A data center campus totaling up to 1GW has been proposed in North Lincolnshire, UK.
A pre-planning application has been filed with North Lincolnshire Council for the development, which would be built on land south and east of Elsham Wolds Industrial Estate, adjacent to the A15. Elsham Wolds is a former RAF base that operated throughout World Wars One and Two.
Elsham Tech Park Ltd, a new company, is behind the data center plan. Details are sparse in the application, but the campus would span 180 hectares and include data center buildings, as well as associated offices and diesel backup generators.
The campus could also feature 48.9MW of onsite power generation, from gas, hydrogen, or fuel cell technology, the pre-application suggests. Where the developer will find the other 950MW it needs is not specified.
Equipment for a district heating system is also included as part of the pre-application, as well as agricultural buildings. This suggests waste heat could be used to warm greenhouses growing produce.
The developer intends to seek outline planning permission, meaning full details of the plan are unlikely to be revealed until the principle of the scheme has been approved by the local authority. The documents submitted suggest construction of the data center could take up to 10 years.
Chillmine, Energywise to develop solar powered data centers in Zimbabwe
Seattle-based cloud computing company Chillmine has signed a memorandum of understanding with Zimbabwean independent power producer (IPP) Energywise to develop solar-powered data centers across the country.
The companies intend to utilize power from Energywise’s planned 100MW Runde River Solar Park in Zvishavane, in the south of the country, to power the facilities. Construction timelines on the project are not available.
The Chillmine-developed data centers are expected to support AI Infrastructure-as-a-Service and cryptomining hosting. Chillmine has indicated that it plans to deploy liquid cooling at the sites to support its sustainability credentials.
“We are not only supporting the growth of emerging technologies but also contributing to the sustainable development of our nation’s infrastructure,” said Culven Chipfumbu, managing director of Energywise.
While not explicitly reported, the data centers will seemingly be directly powered by the solar park. This was alluded to by Chillmine CEO Brian Neirby, who said that the park offers the kind of reliable, renewable power essential for scaling energy-intensive operations like AI computing and crypto mining. The location and construction timelines of the planned data centers were not disclosed.
Chillmine was originally founded in 2018, however, it only registered a domain name – chillmine.io – in December 2024. The site went live in January of this year, with the majority of the executive team, including the CEO, joining at that time.
Digital Realty files to develop 400MW data center campus in Charlotte, North Carolina
Digital Realty has filed for zoning approval to develop a new data center site in Charlotte, North Carolina. It has also expanded its landholdings in the city to grow its existing campus.
As reported by GovTech, Digital Realty this month filed with the City of Charlotte to develop a large new campus along 12899 Moores Chapel Road.
The company, via Digital Moores Chapel LLC, is seeking to rezone 156 acres from I-2 (CD) (general industrial, conditional) to I-2 (CD) SPA (general industrial, conditional, site plan amendment) to allow for a data center development.
The proposal would allow for up to 3 million square feet (278,709 sqm) for telecommunications and data storage uses, built out over two phases. Site plans suggest two two-story buildings; Building 1 set to span 570,880 sq ft (53,036 sqm) per floor, while Building 2 would span 785,480 sq ft (72,973 sqm) per floor.
Digital Realty’s previous earnings results suggest the site could host up to 400MW of capacity.
Currently undeveloped woodland, the site was previously rezoned from single-family use in 2020 to allow for the development of 1.53 million sq ft of a warehousing and industrial site with up to five buildings. Digital acquired the site, located 12 miles west of downtown Charlotte in Mecklenburg County, in November 2024 for $160 million.
LG, KEPCO, and Hanwha partner to develop DC-powered data center
LG Electronics, Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), and Hanwha Construction Division are partnering to develop a direct current-powered data center.
Last week, the three South Korean firms signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a “DC-based data center and ecosystem.”
The three companies will build a ‘power-saving data center’ that supplies 1MW of the total 10MW of data center servers and cooling facilities with direct current. This is to develop a solution to reduce power consumption and heat generation in data centers by utilizing renewable energy as demand for AI data centers increases, and to commercialize their efforts.
Details weren’t shared, but the three companies said they plan to promote a pilot project for a ‘power-saving data center’ that will apply some DC distribution to data centers to be built by Hanwha in the future.
Sify opens second Chennai data center campus in Tamil Nadu, India
Sify Technologies has launched the first phase of a data center campus outside Chennai, India.
Located in Sipcot IT Park, Siruseri, the Chennai 02 campus is south of Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu.
The Siruseri campus is expected to consist of three phases, offering more than 130MW of capacity at full build-out.
Sify’s promotional video stated that the first operational part of the campus, dubbed ‘Tower B,’ would provide over 43MW of capacity. However, during Sify’s Q4 2024 earnings call, Vijay Kumar, executive director of Sify, said that 26MW of capacity is currently “ready and made available for service.”
The data center is capable of supporting a density of 130kW per rack. Eight floors are currently operational, and the facility will have 27 floors when completed .The facility includes an open cable landing station with space for four cables.
T.R.B. Rajaa, the Minister for Industries, Investment Promotions and Commerce in the Government of Tamil Nadu, said that Rs 1,882 crore ($221m) had been invested in the first ‘tower.’ Total investment into the whole campus from Sify and its partners exceeds Rs 10,000 crore ($1.1bn), according to Praveen Krishna, investor relations at Sify.
TikTok to invest US$1.14 billion in Finland data centre as privacy pressures mount
ByteDance’s video sharing platform TikTok plans to build its first data centre in Finland, investing 1 billion euros (US$1.14 billion) in the project.
This move is part of its “Project Clover” initiative launched in 2023. Project Clover focuses on keeping European user data within Europe by default, adding stricter safeguards, and involving an independent security firm to audit these measures. It also includes building privacy-enhancing technologies into existing systems.
The company is committed to invest up to 12 billion euros (US$13.58 billion) for the project over the next decade, amid increasing scrutiny from European lawmakers.
So far, TikTok has made progress: its data centre in Ireland is now operational, and its first facility in Norway went fully online this month. The app has approximately 175 million users in Europe, and TikTok plans to launch more data centres in the coming years
PowerTransitions to convert former power plant in Kansas City into data center
PowerTransitions is seeking to convert a decommissioned power plant and water treatment installation in Kansas City, Kansas into a data center.
According to reporting from Bizjournal, The Unified Government (UG) of Wyandotte County/Kansas City is reviewing a purchase agreement for the Quindaro power station.
The former fossil-fueled power plant is located on a 85-acre property at 3601 N. 12th St. It is owned by the UG and managed by the Board of Public Utilities (BPU). The BPU disconnected two of the power plant’s electricity generating units in 2019 and issued a request for proposals to redevelop the property in September 2023.
PowerTransitions director of redevelopment, Patrick Brosnan told the committee that the company plans to use the site’s existing infrastructure to construct two data center buildings.
“The capital costs to be able to take on those environmental liabilities is outweighed by the ability to be able to access the grid quicker with the existing electric infrastructure,” Brosnan said.
The proposed data center is estimated to require 192MW of power annually, over a minimum 20 year life. PowerTransitions aims to have the site ready for data center construction by 2027–2028, which is faster than starting from a greenfield site, given current supply chain delays pushing new builds to 2029 or later.