CapitaLand has acquired its first hyperscale data centre campus in China for RMB3.66bn (€467m), paving its entry into one of the world’s largest data centre markets.

CapitaLand bought the data centre campus in Minhang District, an established data centre hub of Shanghai, from AVIC Trust and an unrelated third-party vendor.

The asset comprises four buildings with a gross floor area of up to 75,000sqm and up to 55MW of data capacity.

Puah Tze Shyang, CapitaLand China’s CEO, investment and portfolio management, said CapitaLand’s entry into the data centre market in China would further diversify the group’s portfolio across asset classes and build more operating capabilities.

Puah said CapitaLand might also look for opportunities to take strategic positions in data centre operating platforms to accelerate its growth in a key market like China.

He Jihong, CapitaLand Group’s CEO, data centre, and chief corporate strategy officer, said: “5G, artificial intelligence and big data are driving growth of the digital economy and creating strong demand for data centres.

“Data centres are a growing new-economy asset class and represent a global investment opportunity and a key strategic business focus for CapitaLand.”

To read the digital edition of the latest IPE Real Assets magazine click here.