Apac data centre capacity to double by 2030, AI boom creating ‘generational shift’ in power demand: JLL
Data compiled by the realty consultancy shows that Apac data centre capacity will hop from 32 gigawatts (GW) to 57 GW by 2030. Globally, data centre capacity is expected to hit 200GW by then, steered largely by hyperscale cloud development and AI demand.
The AI and data centre boom has actually resulted in a “generational shift in power need”, stated Steven Jack, the company’s head of energy and infrastructure for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, in a Sept 8 release. “Utilities that were predicting modest growth are currently grappling with figures nearly double their previous quotes.”
While data centre build-out still outpaces grid preparation in numerous Apac markets, Cameron expects regional characteristics and grid access obstacles to drive new partnership models. “Whilst the solution will vary depending upon circumstances, it is clear we are going to see many more partnership opportunities and innovative solutions between data centre and energy customers across the region.”
Consequently, grid access is progressively driving decision-making for developers, data centre drivers, energy firms, and tech firms. “For any type of energy developer, without having a grid connection, you don’t have a project,” Jack explained. “For financiers, this grid congestion converts directly into danger, however it also creates a shortage premium for possessions that give or secure grid accessibility.”
All the same, safeguarding power supply is now top of mind for information center investors in Apac, claimed James Cameron, JLL’s head of energy and framework for the area. “In liberalised markets in Apac, like Australia, India, Japan and the Philippines, condition and area of grid connection is the very first concern for investors and has the largest evaluation effect for development assets.”
The restrictions are creating brand-new opportunities in related markets. One such possibility lies in battery energy storage systems (BESS), which JLL posits will certainly play an increasingly essential duty in handling limited grid access and renewable resource intermittency. “They work as shock shields for constricted grids, charging when power is affordable and abundant, then releasing when demand and rate are high,” claimed Eastwick.
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That change has actually emphatically reshaped the data centre landscape, with grid facilities now emerging as the main restriction. “Power demand is rising much faster than grids were constructed to handle,” commented Matt Eastwick, JLL’s US group head and senior managing director for energy and facilities.
Data center capacity in Asia Pacific (Apac) is predicted to nearly two times by 2020, as AI-fuelled growth turns around a decades-long pattern of steady or decreasing electricity need, according to research study by JLL.
Against this backdrop, hyperscalers have disclosed US$ 200 billion ($ 253 billion) in infrastructure spending for 2026, up 51% from 2025. Nonetheless, in spite of the record capital expenditure, interconnection lines up for new renewable projects currently extend to four years or more in some regions, with particular areas forced to pause brand-new connections entirely, according to JLL.
Amid a decentralised influx of brand-new renewable resource sources, existing transmission facilities– originally made for big, centralised power plant– has struggled to cope, causing substantial grid blockage across the globe.
At the same time, grid access difficulties are motivating industry players to become direct participants in the electricity industry, with some technology firms opting to straight up purchase operating renewable assets to assure power source, according to JLL.
