CapitaLand Investment expands its global data centre portfolio with the development of its first data centre in Japan
CapitaLand Investment Limited (CLI), a leading international real asset manager, has acquired a freehold land parcel in Osaka to develop its first data centre in Japan which will entail a whole investment of more than US$700 million. 50 megawatts of power capacity have also been secured for the project. The collection is a testament to CLI’s strong global multi-asset class network & deal-sourcing capability. CLI has added 23 data centres to its international portfolio since 2021 with this latest acquisition. CapitaLand Group has 27 data centres across Asia and Europe with about 800 MW of power & around S$6 billion of assets under management on a completed basis.
Mr Manohar Khiatani, Senior Executive Director of CLI, who oversees the Group’s data centre business said: “CLI’s data centre portfolio has improved mainly over the last few years & we are delighted to expand our footprint to Japan. The acquisition is not only aligned with CLI’s digitalisation investment theme but also improves CLI’s geographical spread, deepening its presence in Japan, one of CLI’s focus markets. CLI’s strong balance sheet gives us the distinct advantage of investing strategically in quality assets with data centres for our future private funds. Japan is a Tier 1 data centre market poised for tremendous growth. It is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 10%, from US$23.8 billion in 2023 to US$38.7 billion in 2028[2]. It is also Asia Pacific’s largest data centre market outside of China with a 1.4 gigawatt capacity[3], with both Tokyo & Osaka being key data centre hubs in the region. Major cloud service providers such as Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure & Oracle already have a presence in Osaka. Our acquisition is hence well-positioned to capture demand in Osaka’s established data centre cluster.”
Ms Michelle Lee, Managing Director of private Funds of CLI, said: “With the rapid adoption of digitalisation and artificial intelligence (AI) internationally & especially in Asia, data centre demand is expected to enjoy double-digit growth & outstrip new supply. There is strong institutional interest in data centre investments, with 97% of investors planning to increase their overall investment in data centres]. Using CLI’s global network and on-ground expertise, we have secured this off-market opportunity in Osaka with 50 MW of power. Since October 2020, CLI has successfully raised about US$600 million (S$810 million) for our data centre development funds in Asia. CLI continues to develop new data centre fund products. We will also build on our investment momentum and identify compelling investment pipeline opportunities for our private fund investors.”
The data centre in Osaka will be AI-ready & feature a state-of-the-art design with usability at its core. It will be designed, built, and certified per Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design or an equivalent Japanese green-certification standard. The facility will navigate energy-saving solutions such as advanced cooling technologies & adopt industry best practices in temperature management to improve energy & water usage efficiency. The data centre will use products with zero ozone depletion potential or with a global warming potential of less than 100 to minimise environmental impact.
CapitaLand Investment’s global data centre capabilities
The data centre in Osaka is a testament to CLI’s experience in investing, designing, developing & operating data centres. Added to CLI’s deep market knowledge, deal-sourcing expertise, & global investment network, CLI’s vertically integrated data centre capabilities enable it to partner with investors to tap into the wealth of opportunities in the sector.
CLI’s ability to deliver world-class data centre solutions was demonstrated recently when CapitaLand India Trust signed a long-term agreement with a leading global hyperscaler for its data centres under development in India. With the agreement, CLINT is likely to pre-lease about half of its total gross power capacity of around 250 MW across its four data centres which are under development in India. CLINT is developing state-of-the-art facilities in all the key data centre corridors of India, i.e., Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore.
CLI’s localised data centre teams are led by country heads with over 25 years of industry experience each & supported by a global Centre of Excellence for data centre led by Mr Kenny Khow, Managing Director for Global Data Centre. Kenny, who has over 30 years of experience, joined CLI in September 2024 to oversee the development & execution of CLI’s strategy for its growing data centre business in close collaboration with CLI’s data centre fund & country teams.CapitaLand Group has data centre investments across nine countries such as Singapore, Japan, South Korea, India, China, the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.
