AI data centers and the power infrastructure needed to operate them are becoming some of Korea’s most attractive assets for global private capital. KKR, Brookfield and Macquarie, together with partners, have pledged at least $10 billion in investments over the coming years, as institutional investors take a growing role in Korea’s data center market. According to Samil PwC, financial investors’ share of data center investment is expected to rise from 17 percent in 2020-2023 to 90 percent in 2024-2027, while Korea’s private commercial data center market is projected to grow 54 percent, from 3.6 trillion won last year to 5.56 trillion won by 2028. KKR has invested heavily in Korean digital and energy infrastructure, including a stake in SK Horizon, an AI data center infrastructure company linked to SK Broadband, while Brookfield has partnered with Naver to finance up to $9 billion in AI infrastructure expansion, alongside Nvidia’s investment in Naver. Macquarie and Keppel are also expanding into Korean data center assets. However, power supply remains a major bottleneck: out of 522 projects submitted to KEPCO for grid review, only 10 had received final power approval as of March. As AI facilities require far more electricity than conventional data centers, future investment may increasingly move beyond Seoul to regions with available power, provided long-term demand from anchor tenants can be secured. (ICE SEOUL)

Fonte notizia: KOREA JOONGANG DAILY