AirTrunk will tap more than a gigawatt of New South Wales renewables to power its data centres.
AirTrunk—the data center company founded by Australian billionaire Robin Khuda and backed by U.S. private equity firm Blackstone—plans to tap over 1 gigawatts of renewable energy facilities being developed by a unit of Danish firm European Energy in New South Wales to power its data center projects.
European Energy Australia is investing over A$1 billion ($683 million) develop a 260-megawatt solar project and an over 800-megawatt battery energy storage, which is expected to come online by 2030, Sydney-based AirTrunk said in a statement released Thursday. It also plans to build up to 350 megawatts of wind power projects that will become available by 2032, it added.
These projects will support AirTrunk’s energy needs in the Hunter region of New South Wales, including the upcoming 550-megawatt Kurri Kurri data center campus in Loxford, about 160 kilometers north of Sydney. A long-term power supply agreement is still being discussed by the two parties. Governments around the world are requiring data center developers to tap into renewable energy sources amid increasing opposition from urban communities to such power-guzzling AI infrastructure hubs being located in their neighborhoods.
“Digital growth must bring new energy with it,” Khuda, CEO of AirTrunk, said in the statement. “The Australian government’s expectations and NSW’s guidelines set a high bar for the industry. This partnership is an important step towards delivering on that commitment.”
As of end-June, AirTrunk used 73% renewable energy to power its data centers and hopes to increase that to 100% by 2030. This week, the company started tapping electricity from European Energy’s 31-megawatt solar farm in Mulwala, also in New South Wales.
With an estimated net worth of $2 billion according to Forbes’ real-time data, Bangladesh-born Khuda is among the wealthiest in Australia. He founded AirTrunk in 2015 and built its presence across the Asia-Pacific region. In 2024, a consortium led by Blackstone and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired AirTrunk in a $16 billion deal. Khuda retains a small but valuable stake in the company.
Want to see more Forbes articles on your feed? Tap here to make Forbes Australia a preferred source on Google.
Look back on the week that was with hand-picked articles from Australia and around the world. Sign up to the Forbes Australia newsletter here or become a member here.
