With this transaction, EQT’s Infrastructure VI fund is expected to be 30-35% invested based on target fund size
Swedish-based global infrastructure investment company EQT announced its EQT Infrastructure VI fund has agreed to partner with data centre operator EdgeConneX to build and operate high-powered and purpose-built data centres for hyperscale customers around the world, expanding into new markets.
EQT owns portfolio companies and assets in Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Americas and has €232 billion in total assets under management (€128 billion in fee-generating assets under management). The companies said this latest investment intends to build out hundreds of megawatts of data centre capacity necessary to support hyperscale customers and the world’s digital economies. It is estimated that the capacity needed to serve AI-focused deployments will triple by 2030.
Since EQT’s acquisition in 2020, EdgeConneX has more than tripled its capacity and expanded into Asia, Latin America and new European markets. Today, the company has a global footprint of 80 data centres in operation or development in more than 50 markets across North America, Europe, APAC and South America. EdgeConneX is already backed by funds EQT Infrastructure IV and EQT Infrastructure V.
Europe important to this global player
EdgeConneX has raised around $5 billion over the last 18 months to fuel its global expansion, most recently a $403.8m deal in sustainability-linked senior facilities, to accelerate the company’s expansion plans and green initiatives for its Jakarta, Indonesia data centre footprint. Last February, EdgeConneX joined the European Data Centre Association (EUDCA) as strategic contributor and board member as it continued its scale out its European footprint that now extends to six markets and more than 200MWs of capacity in the EU.
Speaking on the latest EQT deal EdgeConneX CEO Randy Brouckman said: “We have always taken a customer-centric approach, focused on giving our customers the capacity they need, in the right configuration, in the right markets, at the right time.
“Amid the rapid proliferation of data and compute, data centres are the critical infrastructure housing and connecting the technologies, the companies, and the end-users, thus enabling the future growth of the world’s digital economies,” he added. “With the support of EQT’s deep local presence in critical markets around the world, EdgeConneX has expanded rapidly, and we’re excited about the opportunities this new partnership with EQT will unlock.”
EQT Infrastructure’s Advisory team partner Jan Vesely said: “With the support of EQT Infrastructure’s global presence, industry expertise and dedication to sustainable growth, EdgeConneX together with this new initiative is well-positioned to be a leading provider of critical digital infrastructure worldwide.”