The International Finance Corporation (IFC) and a consortium of six international financial institutions have committed over US$900 million in financing to global data centre operator Yondr Group’s hyperscale data centre campus in Johor Bahru, a city on the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula.
IFC is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets and a member of the World Bank Group. Yondr Group is a global developer, owner and operator of hyperscale data centres.
DBS, Deutsche Bank, Global Infrastructure Partners (a part of Blackrock), HSBC, ING and Natixis CIB joined IFC in the latest round of financing for the 98-megawatt project in Johor Bahru, which is the first phase of a 72.5-acre data centre campus that is set to deliver 300 megawatts of critical IT capacity when fully complete.
The project, says the IFC, is set to become one of the largest and most technologically advanced data centres in Asia Pacific, supporting rapidly growing demand for data processing capacity in the region.
IFC announced a financing package of up to US$150 million for Yondr’s Malaysia project in May 2024, comprising an initial US$50 million bridge loan that, it says, played a crucial role in advancing the project and attracting the six international financial institutions into this most recent financing round. IFC has now committed its second tranche of financing of US$100 million alongside financing from the other lenders.
The campus will be certified by the Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies green building programme, IFC’s green building certification system focused on making buildings more resource efficient.
In this regard, it may be no coincidence that, as we reported at the time, January saw the launch of what Yondr Group called “an ambitious sustainability plan”, which includes a target to achieve net zero by 2030 for scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions.
This project is IFC’s third investment in Malaysia since 2023, when it said it was establishing a presence in Malaysia to support the country’s efforts to foster greater sustainable, resilient, and inclusive economic growth.