'Hyperscale' data centre planned for remote NT

A "hyperscale" data centre campus has been proposed for a remote Northern Territory cattle station, as the industry eyes the region for development.

The proposed 19,150-hectare Project Ares would be built by Energy North on Murranji Station in the Barkly Region, and consist of about 90 hectares of "data halls," powered by a blend of gas and solar energy infrastructure.

At NT budget estimates earlier this month, Minister for Trade, Business and Asian Relations Robyn Cahill said 12 proponents were eyeing the Territory for data centres.

"There's no question that the Northern Territory has become a significant focus, not just in Australia but across the region, (as) the place to be, to develop digital embassies, digital data centres, digital security," she said.

When approached for more detail, Ms Cahill said in a statement the NT was a suitable alternative as traditional hubs have been stretched by booming demand for technology such as artificial intelligence.

"The Northern Territory is uniquely positioned to become Australia's digital gateway to Asia. Darwin offers the lowest-latency connection from Australia into Southeast Asia, backed by a rapidly expanding subsea cable network," she said.

"Global demand for AI, cloud and sovereign data infrastructure is accelerating, placing pressure on traditional hubs like Sydney and Singapore — and the Territory is well placed to capture that opportunity.

"The department is actively engaged with 12 investors on proposed data centre projects. As with all early-stage commercial discussions, the details remain confidential until the projects are more developed."

The Project Ares proposal has been submitted to the national environmental regulator, and is open for public comment.

Water extraction required

Upon completion, the data centre campus could operate for more than 25 years, with a computing capacity of 1 gigawatt and employ up to 500 full time staff.

Energy North's website describes the company as an "Australian-founded developer of large-scale renewable energy and digital infrastructure".

According to the company's plan, the Murranji site was suitable due to its proximity to cable infrastructure connecting Australia to Asia, regular sunlight, access to groundwater and relative isolation from populated areas.

The document also states the site is suitable due to "cattle pastoral activities resulting in some degradation of the natural environment".

Project Ares would operate "entirely off-grid" and be powered by a mixture of gas and renewable energy.

The proposed size of the solar power infrastructure is 6,000-7,000 hectares.

Water for Project Ares would be sourced from the Montejinni Limestone Aquifer for both "potable uses and infrastructure cooling".

The company's referral said the data centre would use no more than 4 gigalitres of water per year, but "actual operational demand is expected to be lower and will be refined through detailed design".

It said in addition to the solar infrastructure, gas-fired electricity would provide "firm power and independent backup" to the site.

Rail infrastructure, a 2 kilometre sealed airstrip, and construction workers' village for up to 4,300 staff would also be built.

Energy North has been contacted for comment.