Apac data centre capacity to double by 2030, AI boom creating ‘generational shift’ in power demand: JLL
Against this backdrop, hyperscalers have reported US$ 200 billion ($ 253 billion) in infrastructure spending for 2026, up 51% from 2025. Nonetheless, regardless of the document capital investment, interconnection lines up for brand-new sustainable projects currently include four years or more in some regions, with particular areas compelled to pause brand-new connections completely, according to JLL.
The AI and data centre growth has actually resulted in a “generational change in energy need”, claimed Steven Jack, the business’s head of energy and infrastructure for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, in a Sept 8 release. “Utilities that were figuring moderate expansion are now grappling with figures virtually double their previous quotes.”
While data centre build-out still outpaces grid planning in a number of Apac markets, Cameron expects local dynamics and grid access obstacles to drive new collaboration models. “Whilst the solution will differ depending upon scenarios, it is clear we will see much more partnership chances and innovative solutions between information centre and power clients throughout the area.”
That shift has actually emphatically improved the data center landscape, with grid framework currently becoming the primary constraint. “Power need is rising quicker than grids were built to manage,” commented Matt Eastwick, JLL’s US group head and senior managing director for energy and infrastructure.
Regardless, securing power supply is currently leading of mind for information centre investors in Apac, said James Cameron, JLL’s head of energy and framework for the area. “In liberalised industry in Apac, like Australia, India, Japan and the Philippines, condition and location of grid link is the first question for financiers and has the largest appraisal impact for development assets.”
At the same time, grid access challenges are prompting industry gamers to become straight players in the energy market, with some technology business deciding to straight up purchase operating renewable assets to assure power supply, according to JLL.
As a result, grid access is progressively driving decision-making for developers, data centre operators, energy firms, and tech business. “For any energy developer, without having a grid link, you don’t have a project,” Jack detailed. “For financiers, this grid blockage converts straight right into risk, but it also produces a deficiency premium for possessions that offer or secure grid accessibility.”
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In the middle of a decentralised influx of brand-new renewable resource resources, presenting transmission facilities– originally designed for big, centralised power stations– has struggled to deal, resulting in substantial grid blockage around the world.
Data put together by the real estate consultancy shows that Apac data center capacity will hop from 32 gigawatts (GW) to 57 GW by 2030. Globally, data centre capacity is anticipated to hit 200GW by then, steered largely by hyperscale cloud development and AI need.
The restrictions are creating brand-new chances in associated industry. One such possibility lies in battery energy storage systems (BESS), which JLL posits will play a significantly essential role in managing limited grid access and renewable resource intermittency. “They act as shock shields for constrained grids, charging when power is affordable and abundant, after that discharging when need and cost are high,” stated Eastwick.
Data centre capacity in Asia Pacific (Apac) is projected to nearly two times by 2020, as AI-fuelled development turns around a decades-long pattern of stable or declining electricity need, according to research by JLL.
