Anthropic Leases First Phase of Zerra DC's $10.4B Queensland

Artificial intelligence laboratory Anthropic has agreed to lease the first stage of a proposed A$14.5 billion ($10.4 billion) data centre campus in Queensland. The deal, announced by Queensland Premier David Crisafulli, represents the US company's first major investment commitment in Australia.

Queensland Premier David Crisafulli announced the agreement in the state's parliament on Wednesday. He stated that San Francisco-based Anthropic will invest in the 1.44 gigawatt Western Downs Digital Park, located in the Darling Downs region approximately 250 kilometres northwest of Brisbane. "To have secured Anthropic’s first major investment in Australia is a massive show of confidence in Queensland," Crisafulli said.

Project Structure and Scale

The consortium developing the project has entered into lease documentation with Anthropic's Australian subsidiary for the delivery of the campus's first stage. Real estate group Dexus disclosed this update because it holds an 85 percent interest in Australian Data Centres, which in turn owns a 25 percent stake in the project's developer consortium. That consortium comprises Singapore's Zerra DC and Australia's Macquarie Capital. The specific capacity Anthropic is leasing and the commercial terms were not revealed.

Australia's total data centre development pipeline has surged to over A$155 billion, with planned or under-construction capacity reaching 16.2GW. According to JLL estimates, this is more than thirteen times current levels. The Western Downs Digital Park could grow to become the country's largest data centre facility.

Development Plans and Approvals

The development application for the site outlines a project built in stages over four to six years. It calls for four 360-megawatt data centre buildings on a 726-hectare site northwest of Dalby. A potential future expansion could boost the total capacity to 2.16GW across six buildings. The project's backers estimate total private capital investment could reach A$31.9 billion if fully expanded.

The site is close to three gas-fired power stations, a solar farm, and the Braemar transmission substation. It lies within a Western Downs energy region hosting an estimated 5.4GW of generation and storage capacity. The project requires approvals from the local Western Downs Regional Council, and Anthropic's lease is contingent on approval from Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board.

Policy and Community Impact

Queensland's state government has positioned itself favorably for data centre investment by opposing a federal plan to mandate that new data centres be powered by new renewable energy projects. Premier Crisafulli stated the federal government had made a "commonsense decision" to allow Queensland to chart its own path for power supply. He emphasized that the facility would not require new electricity transmission infrastructure and would use minimal water.

Crisafulli outlined the state's conditions for such developments in parliament. We must get it right and it must be on our terms, he said. It must add energy generation to the grid and drive down power prices for Queenslanders. He affirmed that communities would have a say in the approval process.

Market Context and Challenges

Concerns about resource consumption are shaping Australia's data centre landscape. According to data from the Australian Energy Market Operator and Commonwealth Bank, data centre electricity use could rise to 6.3 percent of national demand by 2030-31. University of Melbourne research indicates water use by data centres could reach 1.9 percent of Sydney's supply by 2030.

These concerns have stalled some projects in major cities like Sydney. JLL has also warned that competition for industrial land between data centre developers and logistics operators could double warehouse rents in some Australian markets by 2028. Meanwhile, Dexus reported that its Australian Data Centres subsidiary is conducting a capital raising to introduce additional partners to its business.

The Zerra DC facility will connect to the grid via a dedicated high-voltage connection at the Braemar substation, with an on-site battery system to manage load fluctuations. According to the project's planning documents, it will draw from Queensland's mixed-generation grid portfolio, with specific power contracting arrangements to be developed phase by phase. The consortium has pledged to work with future customers on investing in additional generation capacity as demand grows.