Following this week’s news that GDS International received approval to build a hyperscale data centre in Thailand, GDS officially announced on Tuesday it will invest up to US$1 billion over the next five years in the project, and has signed a partnership deal with real estate developer Amata for the site in Chonburi.
Last Friday, Thailand’s Board of Investment (BOI) approved 66.2 billion baht (US$1.96 billion) worth of investments for two new hyperscale data centre projects in Chonburi – one from Quartz Computing, a subsidiary of Google’s parent company Alphabet, and the other from Digitalland Services, a local subsidiary of GDS IDC Services.
During a meeting on Tuesday with Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra in Bangkok, GDS International announced it had signed a comprehensive partnership agreement with Southeast Asian industrial real estate developer and operator Amata to acquire land at the Amata City Chonburi Industrial Estate, which also provides access to renewable energy such as floating solar power.
GDS CEO Jamie Khoo said the site is ideal for data centre development due to the presence of available zones, proximity to subsea cable landing stations, and secure location outside floodplains.
“We selected Amata as our strategic partner for its impressive scale – hosting around 800 factories and commercial outlets – and its reliable, comprehensive utilities and infrastructure that support diverse needs,” she said.
BOI secretary general Narit Therdsteerasukdi added that the Thai government is dedicated to advancing key areas, including the development of clean energy mechanisms.
“We are currently establishing a Direct Power Purchase Agreement (Direct PPA), specifically designed for data centers, and refining digital regulations to support advancements in AI technology,” he said.
Also at the PM meeting, GDS International chairman William Huang confirmed the company’s commitment to the project, saying the US$1 billion investment over five years represents a strategic expansion of its data centre portfolio across Asia-Pacific.
« Our investment in Thailand aligns with our vision of advancing the digital economy across Asia,” Huang said. “Our goal is to build a cutting-edge data centre park that not only meets Thailand’s cloud and AI infrastructure needs but also fosters a thriving data centre ecosystem.”
Khoo added that the US$1 billion investment would also create employment opportunities and support skill development.
“By collaborating with local industry players and educational institutions, we aim to equip the Thai workforce with essential digital skills for the future,” she said.
GDS has not yet revealed how much IT capacity the Chonburi data centre will offer. The company currently has 480MW of data centre capacity in service and under construction in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, and Japan, with an additional 590MW held for future development.