SINGAPORE: CapitaLand Investment (CLI), a leading real estate asset manager, announced on Feb 4 that it would invest over US$700 million (S$944.3 million) to develop its inaugural data centre in Japan. This marks a significant step in the company’s expansion into the rapidly growing digital infrastructure sector.

According to the latest Straits Times report, the new data centre will be built on a freehold land parcel in Osaka, Japan, with an impressive power capacity of 50 megawatts (MW). This project is part of CLI’s broader strategy to meet the surging demand for artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled infrastructure.

Since 2021, CLI has added 23 data centres to its portfolio, reflecting the increasing demand for digital services driven by AI and digitalisation. According to Michelle Lee, CLI’s managing director of private funds (data centre), the global shift towards digitalisation, particularly in Asia, is expected to lead to double-digit growth in data centre demand, outpacing new supply.

Since October 2020, CLI has successfully raised approximately US$600 million for its data centre development funds in Asia, underscoring investor confidence in the sector. The company owns 27 data centres across Asia and Europe, with around 800MW of power capacity and assets under management valued at approximately $6 billion.

The move into Japan is strategically significant. Mr Manohar Khiatani, CLI’s senior executive director overseeing the data centre business, highlighted that Japan’s Tier 1 data centre market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10%, from US$23.8 billion in 2023 to US$38.7 billion in 2028. Additionally, Osaka and Tokyo are key data centre hubs in the Asia-Pacific region, with major cloud providers like Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, and Oracle already operating in the area.

Following the announcement, CLI’s shares rose by 2.1%, or five cents, to $2.47 during midday trading on February 4, reflecting positive investor sentiment about the company’s strategic expansion.

This investment solidifies CLI’s position as a key player in the data centre sector. It responds to the growing need for digital infrastructure in one of Asia’s most dynamic markets.