Data Center Investment News — 14/02/2025
UK government pledges 500MW of data center power for its AI Growth Zones
The UK government says it will work with power companies to make up to 500MW of electricity available for new data center developments in each of its planned AI growth zones. UK regions were invited this week to bid for hosting the growth zones, part of the government’s AI Opportunities Action Plan. The government will work with network operators to scale each zone to 500MW+, prioritizing sites with large existing power connections suggesting ministers are more inclined to rely on existing capacity than finding new sources of energy to boost Britain’s under-pressure grid.
Technology secretary Peter Kyle said the AI growth zones will “deliver untold opportunities – sparking new jobs, fresh investment, and ensuring every corner of the country has a real stake in our AI-powered future”. Kyle also added that “We’re leaving no stone unturned in how we can harness expertise from all over the UK to deliver new opportunities, fresh growth, better public services, and cement our position as an AI pioneer”
The first AI Growth Zone will be built in Culham, Oxfordshire – home to the UK’s Atomic Energy Authority. Since July, the UK government has aimed to attract more data center investment by designating them as critical infrastructure and pledging to ease planning laws for building on greenbelt land. Ministers are reviewing rejected data center applications, with Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner approving a Buckinghamshire development previously rejected by local councilors.
Patrizia and CenterSquare invest in Aligned Data Centers
Patrizia and CenterSquare are among those to have invested in Aligned Data Centers for its 5GW build-out. The two companies invested an undisclosed amount to support the $5bn equity and $7bn debt commitments raised in January. The investment will help Aligned build over 5GW of data center capacity, mainly in North and South America.
James Muir, head of Patrizia’s investment division, stated “This investment is a prime example of how Patrizia is driving innovation in the RE-Infra asset class. Data centers, such as those developed by Aligned, are critical to the digital economy, and we can capture exceptional value for our investors by investing in Aligned’s growth strategy at a critical inflection point – where the company’s established operational portfolio of data centers and robust pipeline offer immediate returns and significant long-term upside”. Todd Briddell, CEO and CIO of CenterSquare added “Partnering with Patrizia on this investment underscores CenterSquare’s continued focus on identifying and supporting privately held high-growth real estate companies operating in high-conviction sectors with strong secular tailwinds and a view towards mid-term liquidity.”
CenterSquare previously invested in Aligned last year, Aligned operates campuses in Chicago, Dallas, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, and Northern Virginia, with sites in development in Maryland, Ohio, Illinois, and Virginia. Internationally, it acquired OData in LATAM and has a presence in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Canada through QScale. Aligned’s $12bn funding round was led by Macquarie Asset Management, with other unnamed global investors. Macquarie has been Aligned’s largest shareholder since its first investment in 2018, alongside BlueMountain Capital Management.
Equinix plans $1bn Saudi data center
Equinix is set to invest more than $1 billion in a data center in Saudi Arabia. The facility would provide 100MW of capacity. Judith Gardiner, vice president for emerging markets at Equinix, said “The data center will facilitate our hyperscale and retail customers, companies in Saudi Arabia and beyond, and also bring many of our customers to the Middle East”
Other specifications of the facility have not yet been shared. Saudi Arabia’s tech start-ups secured $494 million for AI, with backing from STV, Rua Ventures, Beco Capital, and Waed Capital. Microsoft also plans to open a data center academy in partnership with the National Information Technology Academy in Dammam.
Huawei plans a Future Skill Centre in Saudi Arabia to train 25,000 people in AI, cloud, and big data. DataVolt is developing a 1.5GW data center in Neom City. Total pledges to enhance Saudi Arabia’s AI and data center capabilities have reached $21 billion. Equinix has facilities in Oman, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi.
AirTrunk announces second Malaysian data center in Johor
Data center operator AirTrunk has announced plans to build a second Malaysian data center in Iskandar Puteri, Johor. JHB2 will be scalable to over 270MW, increasing AirTrunk’s investment in Malaysia to RM 9.7 billion ($2.2bn). Located in a major availability zone, it will support Malaysia’s digital economy. The facility will feature liquid cooling technology, a PUE of 1.25, and offer renewable energy options.Bottom of Form
Following the July 2024 launch of JHB1, offering 21,900 sqm and 150MW capacity, AirTrunk’s CEO Robin Khuda highlighted the company’s support for Malaysia’s digital and economic growth. AirTrunk is focusing on circularity and sustainability, with solar deployments at JHB1 and a signed vPPA for 30MW of renewable energy under Malaysia’s Corporate Green Power Programme.
AirTrunk is collaborating with Tenaga Nasional Berhad to connect JHB2 to the Green Lane Pathway for faster electricity supply. The company will also provide land for a new substation. Founded in 2018, AirTrunk now operates 12 facilities across Australia, Singapore, Japan, and Hong Kong, in addition to Malaysia with a hyperscale platform totaling nearly 1.8GW of capacity. Blackstone and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired AirTrunk for $16.1 billion, the largest deal in the sector. Johor has become a key market for data centers, with operators like Keppel, Princeton Digital, STT GDC, Yondr, and Equinix present..
Yondr breaks ground on third facility at 100MW London campus
Yondr has broken ground on the third building at its London campus in Slough. The new 40MW facility, set for completion in mid-2026, will bring the London campus total to 100MW. Yondr secured planning permission in August 2024, following the completion of its first 30MW facility. The second 30MW facility is under construction, and solar panels are planned for the roof.
In collaboration with Slough Borough Council and the Canal & River Trust, Yondr aims to enhance biodiversity, improve the canal side, and focus on aesthetics and active transport access for residents.
Peter Hill, VP of design and construction EMEA, Yondr added “The plans for this third building on our London campus show a clear evolution of our data center design and delivery capabilities. It demonstrates just how far we have come in embracing sustainability to deliver our carbon neutrality goals and bring forward exemplary data center developments”Bottom of Form
Slough is a major data center hub in the UK, with operators like CyrusOne, NTT, Equinix, and Kao having a presence, and new developments planned by Iron Mountain and Digital Realty.
Tusass plans data center in Nuuk, Greenland
Tusass is planning a new data center in the capital city, Nuuk, located in the Qinngorput area. Construction will begin soon, with completion expected by the end of 2026. The project will cost DKK 155 million ($21.5m).
Bottom of FormTusass COO, Jonas Hasselriis, said: “A modern data center in Nuuk, to house our most critical infrastructure, is a necessity. It is not only about security of supply, but also about the general security of society. This data center is the first investment in our new strategy, and in the coming years we will invest massively in increased security in Greenlandic telecommunications.
Permagreen, a Greenlandic construction company, will be the main contractor for this project. Permagreen CEO, Jeppe Bloch Steffensen, added: “The collaboration with Tusass gives us the opportunity to show our expertise in construction and technical installations. We look forward to delivering a data center that meets the highest industry standards and contributes to the country’s digital future.”
Tusass, rebranded from Tele Greenland in 2021, operates one data center in Nuuk. The company owns two subsea cables, Greenland Connect and Greenland Connect North, with another domestic cable in development. Tusass has ground station sites in Ittoqqortoormiit, Qaanaaq, and Tasiilaq, and leases capacity from Hispasat’s Amazonas Nexus satellite and has a satellite distribution deal with OneWeb. Tusass plans to invest DKK 1.9 billion ($263m) in satellite partnerships, a new submarine cable, 5G upgrades, and data centers. DKK 350 million ($48.5m) of this will come from an EU grant.
Stack plans another data center campus in Virginia’s Loudoun County
Stack is expanding its footprint in Virginia with a new 144MW campus in Loudoun County, located in greater Ashburn. The campus will have two, two-story buildings, each offering 72MW, with an on-site substation and a closed-loop water cooling system for AI workloads.
Ty Miller, chief commercial officer of Stack Americas said, “Stack is committed to delivering critical capacity where our clients need it most, and Loudoun County remains a critical hub for digital infrastructure.” The new Loudoun County Campus spans 122 acres near Dulles Airport, covering 1.31 million sq ft across two buildings, with shell or turnkey build options.
Stack, launched in 2019 by IPI after merging T5 data centers with three Infomart facilities, was recently acquired by Blue Owl. The company has 4GW in operation or development globally, with 6GW planned. Stack operates data centers in cities like Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas Fort Worth, New Albany, Northern Virginia, Phoenix, Portland, and Silicon Valley. It has six campuses in operation or development in Northern Virginia, totaling 700MW across around a dozen buildings. Recently, Stack announced plans for a 1GW campus in Virginia’s Stafford County.
Singtel’s Nxera secures loan for 58MW Singapore data centre
Nxera, Singtel’s data centre business, has secured a S$643 million (US$475 million) green loan to fund the development of a 58MW data centre, DC Tuas, in Singapore. The five-year loan is backed by DBS, OCBC, Standard Chartered, HSBC, and UOB. The data centre, expected to begin operations in 2026, will be Singapore’s most hyper-connected green facility with high power density. DC Tuas will have a green design and advanced liquid cooling systems to support high-intensity compute and AI workloads
Singtel CFO Arthur Lang stated, “DC Tuas will feature a green design and build, as well as next-generation liquid cooling systems, making it ideal for meeting the demand from enterprises for high intensity compute and AI workloads”.
Nxera aims for a PUE below 1.25 at full load and plans to achieve net-zero emissions by 2028. It currently operates DC West and Kim Chuan 2 data centres in Singapore and secured a S$535 million green loan in December 2023 for their operations. Nxera is expanding in Southeast Asia with a 40MW facility in Thailand, a 50MW site in Indonesia, and a 200MW site in Johor, Malaysia, in partnership with TM Malaysia.Top of FormBottom of Form
DataVolt plans 1.5GW data center campus in Neom’s Oxagon
DataVolt and Neom have signed a $5 billion deal to develop a 1.5GW data center campus in Oxagon, Neom, a floating industrial city on the Red Sea in Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk Province. The first 300MW phase is expected to go live in 2028. Oxagon will lease land to DataVolt and provide infrastructure, while the site will be powered by Neom’s renewable wind and solar energy.
Rajit Nanda, CEO of DataVolt, emphasized, “This agreement with Neom and Oxagon underscores our unwavering commitment to support the Kingdom’s vision of becoming a regional digital and AI hub. The Kingdom’s strategic location, coupled with its abundant green energy resources, aligns perfectly with DataVolt’s mission in providing state-of-the-art sustainable data centers.”
Founded in 2023 as a subsidiary of Vision Invest, DataVolt focuses on critical infrastructure, planning to invest over $5 billion in data center capacity in Saudi Arabia, with additional projects in Dhaka and Uzbekistan. Neom is developing several data centers, including an 18,000 sqm center by Tonomus, launched in July 2023, and Oracle’s cloud region. In 2021, Neom entered a $500 million joint venture with EzdiTek (ZeroPointDC) to build Oxagon data centers, and reports suggested talks for a 1GW data center at Oxagon, though details remain unclear.
G42 and DataOne to establish AI data center in France
G42 is partnering with DataOne to build an AI data center in Grenoble, France, powered by AMD hardware. The Core42 facility will provide computational resources to French enterprises and researchers, with operations expected to begin by mid-2025. While the size of G42’s investment and the data center’s capacity remain undisclosed, the project marks a significant step in strengthening Europe’s AI infrastructure.
Kiril Evtimov, group CTO of G42 and CEO of Core42, said, “France is taking bold strides in AI innovation, and G42 is proud to contribute to this effort. By deploying AMD GPUs, we are not only strengthening Europe’s AI infrastructure but also enabling enterprises and researchers to accelerate innovation at scale.” DataOne, which was founded by BSO, is expanding its Tier III campuses in Grenoble and Villefontaine (Lyon). The data centers currently offer 15MW of IT load, with plans to grow to 400MW by 2028.
Charles-Antoine Beyney, CEO of DataOne, said, “We are extremely proud to count Core42 among our esteemed clientele and thrilled to take on the challenge of deploying their largest AI supercomputer in Europe within just 20 weeks.” The center will use AMD GPUs from the Instinct AI chip range. Lisa Su, AMD chair and CEO, remarked, “Our strategic collaboration with G42 will help energize the French AI ecosystem, providing the compute capacity needed to enable local AI start-ups and pioneers.” Additionally, France and the UAE are collaborating on a €50 billion project, which may include a 1GW data center.
EdgeConneX plans 120MW gas plant to power Ohio data center
EdgeConneX has proposed a 120MW gas-fired power plant in Licking County, Ohio, to power a data center at the New Albany International Business Park. The plant will be built on 48.6 acres northwest of Ohio 161 and Mink Street. Construction is set to begin in Q4 2025, with commercial operations expected by Q1 2026. PowerConneX will hold a public meeting about the project on February 19 from 6-8 pm at the New Albany-Plain Local Schools Annex, with a second session on March 19.
PowerConneX plans to file its application with the Ohio Power Siting Board within 90 days of the March 19 meeting. If approved, a public hearing will be scheduled within 60-90 days. The meeting will include an open-house poster session for community engagement.
Data center operators are turning to natural gas for quicker development, with companies like Chevron and ExxonMobil planning gas power plants. EdgeConneX also announced its entry into Japan with a 140MW data center in Osaka-Kyoto and a €600 million investment in renewable-powered data centers in Heusenstamm, Germany.
Green Mountain and KMW top out data center outside Frankfurt, Germany
Green Mountain and KMW have topped out a 25,000 sqm data center in Mainz, Germany, offering 18MW of capacity, with plans to expand to 54MW. The campus will be fully powered by renewable energy and provide heat for 20,000 households. Construction began in October 2023 through a joint venture. The data center will use green electricity, Rhine water cooling, district heating, and have a PUE value below 1.3, creating a sustainable and technologically advanced facility.
Svein Atle Hagaseth, CEO of Green Mountain, said: “Our FRA-Mainz project sets a new standard for sustainable data centers – not only in Germany, but worldwide. This project shows how we can create a greener digital future through partnerships and innovative technologies. This is a milestone we can all be proud of.”Bottom of Form
Green Mountain, founded in 2009 and acquired by the Israeli Azrieli Group for $850 million in 2021, operates data centers in Norway (Oslo, Rjukan, and Rennesøy) with plans for more campuses in Kalberg, Gismarvik, Undheim, and Hønefoss. It has signed a 90MW hosting deal with TikTok at its OSL2-Hamar site and a 10MW deal with a cloud provider in Oslo. KMW, established in 1931, has invested in various renewable energy projects, including wind and solar farms and power plants. Frankfurt is a key data center hub with major players like Digital Realty, CyrusOne, NTT, and Equinix having a presence in the city.
Brookfield and Data4 to spend €20bn on AI infrastructure in France
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners intends to invest €20 billion ($20.7bn) in AI infrastructure across France over the next five years. Most of the investment will go to Data4, with €15bn ($15.5bn) allocated to expand its data center network in France. Data4 aims to increase its capacity from 375MW to 500MW, with an additional 1GW over the next five years, likely adding new data centers across several regions in France.
Olivier Micheli, CEO of Data4, stressed that investing in AI data centers is vital for France. With Brookfield’s €15 billion investment, Data4 aims to triple its capacity in France by 2030, making it their top European market, and highlighted the importance of public-private cooperation for AI leadership.
Brookfield’s digital infrastructure includes DCI Data Centers in APAC, Compass Data Centers in North America, and Data4 in Europe. Data4 runs about 30 data centers in France, Italy, Spain, Poland, and Luxembourg, with three campuses in Paris totaling 375MW. In January, Data4 raised €3.3bn ($3.4bn) in debt financing, with €1.1bn allocated for new projects. Brookfield was also considering selling a minority stake in Data4 to raise €3.5 billion ($3.8bn). French President Macron welcomed the €20 billion investment, saying it will help France stay competitive in AI. France’s total AI investment during the summit is €109bn ($112.5bn), including a joint €30-€50 billion ($31-52bn) commitment with the UAE for AI infrastructure, featuring a new 1GW data center in France.
Amazon Data Services Acquires 220 Acres in Sunbury, Ohio, for $44.3M, Boosting Region’s Data Center Growth
Amazon Data Services Inc. has acquired a 220 acre property in Sunberry, Ohio, for $44,374,040 USD, reinforcing the area’s reputation as a premier destination for data center development. The transaction was facilitated by Robert Griffin and Michael Morris of Newmark, who represented the seller in this significant deal.
Sunbury, part of the expanding Columbus data center corridor, is rapidly emerging as a prime destination for digital infrastructure investment. With strong connectivity to major fiber routes, competitive energy pricing, and business-friendly tax incentives, the region offers an ideal environment for hyperscale and colocation developments.
A growing emphasis on sustainability and resilient infrastructure further enhances its appeal. This continued investment underscores Ohio’s strategic role in supporting the increasing demand for data centers, positioning Sunbury as a rising player in the U.S. data center landscape.