NEXTDC raises $550 million for Asian expansion

NEXTDC has raised approximately $550 million from investors for further expansion in Asia and is seeking to raise up to another $200 million. 

The capital raised will be used to buy new data centre development sites in Asia and for “general corporate purposes and transaction costs”. 

The company “continues to see opportunity in the growing cloud and AI-led demand for digital infrastructure throughout core Asian markets, which it believes creates strong tailwinds for NEXTDC and its key global cloud service provider customers.” 

“While the Company is already well placed from a liquidity perspective to continue to accelerate its development activities,” NEXTDC chierf executive and managing director Craig Scroggie said, “it is becoming clear that opportunities for value accretive investment in the near term will continue to grow in accordance with our record pipeline and strong growth in the demand for cloud and AI services.” 

NEXTDC announcement stated that it continues to “actively evaluate and plan its expansion in these new markets, including site evaluation and negotiation in Bangkok, Thailand (BK1) and Johor, Malaysia (JB1).” 

In FY24, it received foreign investment approval from Thailand’s Board of Investment for the development of a new hyperscale data centre in Bangkok.  

The comany expects its planned JB1 development to provide “a critical next step in the expansion of NEXTDC’s existing presence in Malaysia, with practical completion of its KL1 site expected in FY26.” 

“We're thrilled the Thailand BOI approved our investment application for a new NEXTDC hyperscale data centre in Bangkok,” Scroggie stated. 

“In addition to our ongoing development and expansion in Malaysia, this capital raising will support another significant step in NEXTDC’s expansion efforts in Southeast Asia and underscores our commitment to delivering world class Tier IV and built-to-suit data centre solutions across the region.” 

“The strong support for this placement highlights continued investor confidence in NEXTDC’s growth strategy and long-term vision.” 

NEXTDC is also seeking to raise up to an additional $200 million via a share purchase plan, which is scheduled to open on September 18, 2024, and close on October 4, 2024.