APAC Data Centers Need $116B – Who Will Fund the Boom?

The Asia-Pacific region is on the cusp of a data center revolution—but with power constraints, regulatory challenges, and rising costs, who will fund the $116B needed for expansion?

Mar 09, 2025

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Global Data Center News Roundup – The biggest AI and cloud infrastructure developments shaping the industry this week.
APAC’s $116 Billion Data Center Surge – Why the region is the fastest-growing AI and cloud hub.
Power & Regulatory Challenges – Can APAC scale energy infrastructure fast enough?
Investment Trends – Who’s funding the next wave of hyperscale expansion?

Dear Reader,

Asia-Pacific is on track for a historic data center expansion, with $116 billion in funding required to meet skyrocketing demand for AI, 5G, and cloud services.

While hyperscalers and investors race to scale infrastructure, power constraints, regulatory shifts, and land availability are shaping where and how new capacity is built.

Meanwhile, major developments worldwide—from Blackstone doubling down on data center investments to Microsoft’s continued cloud expansion in Europe and OpenAI’s AI infrastructure push in Texas—highlight how rapidly the sector is evolving.

Will APAC cement its status as the world’s next AI infrastructure powerhouse, or will these hurdles slow growth?

Here’s what you need to know.

North America

💰 OpenAI & Oracle Partner on Texas AI Data Center – OpenAI and Oracle are teaming up to build a high-density AI compute facility in Texas, leveraging thousands of Nvidia GPUs to support OpenAI’s expanding AI workloads.

🏗️ Stack Infrastructure Plans $10 Billion Data Center in Virginia – A massive new hyperscale campus is in the works in Fredericksburg, reinforcing Northern Virginia’s role as the world’s premier data center hub.

📈 CoreWeave’s IPO Moves Forward Amid AI Infrastructure Boom – The specialized AI cloud provider is preparing for a multi-billion-dollar IPO, further cementing its place as a key player in high-performance AI compute.

💰 Blackstone Remains Bullish on Data Center Investments – Blackstone President Jonathan Gray reaffirmed the firm’s confidence in data center spending, emphasizing their critical role in AI and cloud computing.

Europe

🌍 UK Approves £10 Billion QTS Data Center Campus – One of Europe’s largest data center projects has been approved in Cambois, Northumberland, reinforcing the UK’s position as a leading hyperscale and AI compute hub.

🇪🇸 Microsoft Expands Cloud Footprint in Spain – The tech giant is building a new data center campus in Zaragoza, part of its broader European cloud and AI infrastructure expansion.

🌱 CRA to expand data center outside Prague – The Czech telecoms firm České Radiokomunikace (CRA) is expanding one of its data centers in Prague, adding an additional 1.3MW of capacity and 171 racks.

🏢 Arjun in Talks to Invest in Brookfield-Backed Data4 – The European data center operator Data4 is attracting major institutional investment, with Arjun Infrastructure Partners considering a stake in the Brookfield-backed company.

Asia-Pacific

🇦🇺 Partners Group Commits $1.2 Billion to Australia’s GreenSquareDC – The major investment will transform GreenSquareDC into a next-generation AI and cloud infrastructure platform, reinforcing Australia’s growing role in the region’s hyperscale ecosystem.

🇻🇳 Vietnam’s SAM DigitalHub Launches $1.5 Billion Data Center Campus – Saigon Asset Management is developing a 150MW campus, signaling Vietnam’s rise as a key emerging market for AI-driven infrastructure.

🌏 South Korea Secures 18,000 GPUs for AI Data Centers – The country is investing aggressively in AI infrastructure, ensuring it has the compute capacity needed to power next-generation AI applications.

Middle East & Africa

🖥️ Microsoft Invests Extra ZAR 5.4 Billion in South African Cloud – Microsoft is doubling down on its Azure expansion in South Africa, reinforcing the continent’s growing demand for cloud and AI infrastructure.

🇰🇪 Kenya’s Safaricom Completes First Phase of Limuru Data Center – The leading East African telecom has completed Phase 1 of its data center expansion, improving regional cloud connectivity.

🏢 Kuwait to Host AI-Powered Azure Region – Microsoft has announced a new Azure cloud region in Kuwait, positioning the Middle East as a key hub for AI and hyperscale cloud infrastructure.

South America

🌎 Brazil’s Data Center Boom Sparks Energy Concerns – The country’s rapid hyperscale expansion is raising questions about power supply stability, as AI and cloud computing demand strain national grids.

APAC’s $116 Billion Data Center Pipeline: The Next Frontier or a Bottleneck in the Making?

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