ASX: Macquarie Technology buys land in Sydney’s Macquarie Park for $3 billion data centre expansion

Construction of the development in Northern Sydney is expected to be completed in 2029.

Sineva Wilson
The Nightly
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced plans to establish an Office of Artificial Intelligence within the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, alongside a world-first AI framework to be legislated by early next year.

Macquarie Technology has paid $240 million for about eight acres of land in Sydney as part of its plan for a $3 billion data centre expansion.

The Australian data centre company bought the more than 34,200 square metre light industrial zoned site using cash reserves and corporate debt, it said.

“Completion of the purchase is subject to standard settlement procedures and is expected to occur over the next few weeks,” the company said in a statement.

Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.

Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.

Email Us
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.

The site is located between Talavera Road and the M2 motorway in the Northern Sydney suburb of Macquarie Park.

Macquarie Tech said it was now eyeing ways to fund the cost of building the data centres, which is expected to use advanced air cooling technology that uses “limited water”.

Funding options include capital recycling, project finance, or new infrastructure investors.

The construction of the development is expected to be completed in late 2029.

“The campus will build on the Group’s recently announced partnership with Macquarie University and will provide practical hands on opportunities for students and researchers to utilise latest data centre, cyber security, AI and cloud technologies and the new Macquarie campus.”

Macquarie Tech’s shares, which have gained more than 30 per cent in the past few months, fell 0.2 per cent in morning trading on Thursday to $65.90.

The company’s shares reached a high of more than $78 this year as investors were bolstered by news the Australian government would back its expansion plans.

In March, the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation, a government-backed sovereign investor, announced it would park $200 million into Macquarie Technology.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday unveiled new legal standards for artificial intelligence and data centres, setting up a framework to manage the rollout of the emerging technology which will be introduced in early 2027.

The government plans to require AI data centre operators to cover the cost of new energy generation over concerns from communities about the environmental impacts.

Comments

Latest Edition

The Nightly cover for 15-07-2026

Latest Edition

Edition Edition 15 July 202615 July 2026

Albanese launches major mission to tame out-of-control tech. But is the AI genie out of the bottle?