Adelaide volleyball ground to serve as new data centre location for NEXTDC

In partnership with the South Australian Department for Trade and Investment, data centre-as-a-service provider NEXTDC (ASX: NXT) has announced it will invest $100 million to build a data centre on the City Beach volleyball site in Adelaide.

The tech company will construct a premium-grade data centre facility and mission critical operations tower in Adelaide CBD, as it further expands its national digital infrastructure platform for the digital economy.

Located at 211 Pirie Street, the facility will deliver 10MW of critical power and cloud interconnection capability, as well as mission-critical operational space (MCX), providing highly reliable and customisable office space designed to house essential personnel and support business continuity.

“We are honoured to have been selected by the City of Adelaide to develop this strategic site into a new world-class technology centre of excellence. We are excited to be a part of the growing ecosystem of leading technology companies that are investing in the South Australian economy,” NEXTDC CEO Craig Scroggie said.

“Our partnership with the South Australian Government was instrumental in developing our long-term strategy to support the growth of the state.

“This digital infrastructure development represents an important investment in South Australia, that will further support and accelerate the growth of the SA Government’s Digital transformation strategy”.

As the first technology hub of its kind in South Australia, NEXTDC confirms the development will inject significant technological capability into the State’s hi-tech ecosystem while introducing a sovereign capability that will benefit the defence and hi-tech industries.

“We have been working very closely with NEXTDC to bring them to South Australia for some time, and I’m absolutely thrilled they have chosen Adelaide as the city they want to invest and create jobs in,” SA Premier Steven Marshall said.

“Their investment will go beyond the creation of the data centre and include the opportunity for collaboration with our state’s universities, ensuring a pipeline of skilled workers for the future.

“As a company, NEXTDC is also passionate about energy sustainability and the renewable economy, very much aligning with our Government’s commitment to the circular economy.”

With 14 existing data centres located across Australia, NEXTDC focuses on sustainability through renewable energy sources. Its corporate operations has been certified carbon neutral under the Australian Government’s climate active carbon-neutral standard.

“As a city that is focused on building greater digital capabilities and attracting a broad range of businesses and investment, NEXTDC is precisely the type of business we want to see based here,” Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor said.

“Not only will the sale of 211 Pirie Street see a company with a strong global reputation further cement Adelaide’s reputation as an affordable and innovative place to do business, but the investment will also be responsibly used for the growth of the city.”

NEXTDC expect the development will provide opportunities for collaboration with the state’s universities, developing a pipeline of skilled workers for the future.

Volleyball SA, who previously organised activities on the site before the community land status was revoked in July 2021, supports the move.

“Volleyball SA are in full support of the new data centre to be built on Pirie Street, and we look forward to working with the City of Adelaide and NEXTDC in the transition and final stages of Adelaide City Beach,” general manager of Volleyball SA Karla Della Pietra told Business News Australia.

“We have a vision for an exciting and inclusive Urban Beach Hub at Bonython Park/Tulya Wardli, which will give the community more opportunities to get healthy and active in a central location.

“The City of Adelaide has supported Volleyball SA from the very early stages in finding a new site for our much-loved beach volleyball facility, and we look forward to working with the council as we try to secure state government funding and develop our new site.”

Shares in NEXTDC (ASX: NXT) dropped 0.77 per cent, as of 11.30am AEDT, on the back of the announcement.