GLP enters Japan data centre market with $12 bil investment in Osaka and Tokyo

Real estate developer GLP has announced it will enter Japan’s data centre market, investing more than JPY 1.5 trillion ($12 billion) over the next five years.

In a Feb 21 release, the company says this is to support the increasing demand for high-performance and environmentally-friendly data centres in Japan, with a target of delivering 900 megawatts (MW) of power capacity for data centres.

The investment regions are Greater Tokyo and Greater Osaka, which are the “most active and demanding areas for online consumption and digital applications”, driving demand for data centres.

GLP added it has currently secured land to develop data centre assets that will provide approximately 600 MW of power capacity when they are completed.

It expects to break ground on its first Japan data centre campus in Greater Tokyo in 2023, with the first building expected to be ready for service from 2024.

Yoshiyuki Chosa, president of GLP Japan, pointed at GLP’s expertise in developing and operating logistics facilities, and that the expansion into data centres was a “natural extension”.

“With our investment and operating expertise, we believe we are well-positioned to build and scale a high-quality, full-service digital infrastructure platform to serve the growing needs in this market and serve the growing institutional investor demand for this asset class.”

GLP claims that Japan’s data centre market is growing annually at a rate of 16% year-on-year, as increased adoption of new technologies, data analytics and the Internet of Things have translated to a surge in demand for secure, reliable and efficient digital infrastructure solutions to support digital consumption.

However, the company is aware that this is a sector that consumes a lot of energy. As such, GLP says the data centres will look to adopt efficiency measures throughout the design, build and operating process, to reduce operational costs for customers while helping them reach their sustainability goals.

Elsewhere, the company is also in the data centre business in China, as one of the largest vertically integrated data centre operators with assets that will provide over 1,400 MW of IT capacity.

In addition to China and Japan, GLP also says it has secured prime data centre campus sites in Europe to capitalise on growth opportunities in the digital infrastructure industry.