businessLIVE
Australian outback data centre developer scraps start date after regulator delay
Energy North scraps June 2028 first-power date for Australian outback data centre after regulator delay
Key points
- Energy North had given a first-power date of June 28, 2028, in regulatory filings about four months earlier.
- The Northern Territory environment regulator suspended its seven-week deadline in an October 7 ruling.
- At 1 gigawatt, the Project Ares campus is four times the size of a delayed NextDC expansion in Melbourne.
Why it matters. The delay is a setback to Australia's ambitions to become a fast-track destination for AI investment, and federal policy advice may shape the project's future timeline.
Energy North, developer of one of Australia's biggest planned data centres, has abandoned its June 28, 2028 first-power date after a Northern Territory regulator suspended its deadline on October 7. Vice president Daniel Hunter said the date was 'an indicative schedule' and the company is 'no longer working to it'. The regulator gave no new timeframe and will seek federal government advice on the 1-gigawatt, 191 sq km campus.
Latest updates
Australian outback data centre developer scraps start date after regulator delay
The developer of one of Australia's biggest planned data centres has scrapped its target start date, Reuters reported. Startup Energy North says it has finance lined up for the project, which would be powered by gas and solar on a cattle ranch in the country's remote north. The site is 683 km (424 miles) from the nearest city. The regulator said it needed longer than usual to set environmental parameters for the development. The delay is a setback to Australia's ambitions to become a fast-track destination for AI investment.