AirTrunk secures RM9.5 billion ‘green loan’ to develop upcoming data centre in Johor

Australian data centre company AirTrunk has secured USD2.325 billion or roughly RM9.5 billion in ‘green financing’ to support the development of its second hyperscale data centre campus in Johor Bahru, marking what the company says is the largest green project financing for a single data centre in Malaysia.

The financing, secured under AirTrunk’s Green Financing Framework, will fund the development of its JHB2 campus in Iskandar Puteri, which was announced in in early 2025 and had its groundbreaking ceremony in April this year. The facility expands AirTrunk’s presence in Johor alongside its existing JHB1 campus, as demand for and AI infrastructure continues to grow.

According to AirTrunk, JHB2 is designed to achieve a Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of 1.37, below the global average of between 1.5 to 1.6, and will utilise advanced water-efficient cooling technology to reduce its environmental impact, which is how they can classify the financing as a ‘green loan’.

The green loan is backed by a consortium of 30 local and international financial institutions and marks AirTrunk’s first financing partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group.

“This green financing demonstrates how digital infrastructure can be developed responsibly. As one of the largest issuers of sustainable finance in the global data centre industry, we will continue to invest in infrastructure that prioritises energy and water efficiency while ensuring the benefits extend beyond our campuses through meaningful contribution to support local communities,” – Lim Pei Jet, AirTrunk VP and Country Head, Malaysia

AirTrunk added that margin savings generated through the financing will continue to support community initiatives in Malaysia, including recycled water programmes in schools, disaster relief efforts with Mercy Malaysia and STEM education programmes with Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM).

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