New peak industry body established in Australia for Data Centres

Several leading data centre companies helped lay the foundations for Data Centres Australia.

A new peak industry body for Data Centres has launched in Australia with the aim to lead advocacy and engagement for the growing sector.

The new body named, Data Centres Australia was created in an effort to secure Australia’s place as a major hub for AI infrastructure investment and sustainable development.

Data Centres Australia will work with government and stakeholders to address key challenges in areas such as planning and development, energy, water and workforce.

It will provide dedicated engagement, collaboration, education and advocacy for the data centre sector in Australia.

Belinda Dennett, CEO of the new not-for-profit member group said Australia has already produced several world-class data centre companies and captured the attention of the global AI ecosystem.

“By working together to establish the best possible policy settings and supporting infrastructure like energy and water, we have a generational chance to capture substantial additional value for the nation,” she said.

Dennett was the previous head of government relations at AirTrunk. She noted that the complexity and scale of AI infrastructure expansion is challenging the conventional ways that we facilitate development.

“This means that countries that bring government, industry and stakeholders into genuine alignment, and move together at speed, will lead this industrial transformation,” she said.

“This is a historical shift that will establish our capability and future prosperity for decades to come. Progress now depends on urgency, coordination and shared execution.”

The new peak body has launched following a two-year informal pilot between AirTrunk, AWS, CDC Data Centres, Microsoft and NEXTDC.

Other new members of Data Centres Australia include Equinix, Goodman Group, Schneider Electric, STACK Infrastructure and TikTok.

Dennett said, “Our members are at the forefront of AI infrastructure development and key to Australia realising the significant opportunities on offer.

“As the dedicated sector-level representative, Data Centres Australia will focus directly on the specific issues of data centre development and operations, collaborating to identify practical policy solutions that help establish Australia as a major hub for AI infrastructure investment and sustainable development.”

Data Centres Australia was launched by Dr Andrew Charlton, assistant minister for Science, Technology and the Digital Economy, in recognition of the dynamic growth and strategic value of the Australian data centre sector.