The delay adds to a run of setbacks that point to rising execution risk across Australia’s (and global) data centre sector, where permitting, energy supply and community opposition are all lengthening timelines. Listed developers and landlords such as NextDC and Goodman have already pulled back or delayed projects this year, and a regulatory hold on a project in one of the country’s most sparsely populated regions suggests location alone will not clear the path. Slower approvals push out revenue for developers and could weigh on valuations that assume fast AI-driven growth. The setback is also a potential headwind for Northern Territory gas developers, whose demand outlook increasingly relies on data centre power.
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Even a cattle station almost 700 km from the nearest city is not remote enough to escape regulatory delay, as Australia’s data centre pipeline runs into planning, power and social-licence hurdles. And populist clap-trap too.
Summary:
- Startup Energy North has dropped the June 2028 first power date for its planned 1 GW gas and solar data centre in the Northern Territory
- The territory’s environment regulator suspended its seven-week deadline to set assessment terms, citing the need to consult the federal government, which is still developing data centre policy
- The regulator flagged 10 potential impacts, including strain on water systems and disruption to Aboriginal sacred sites, and said it had little confidence in the proposed mitigation measures
- Energy North says it remains committed and will confirm timing once environmental impact statement terms are set
- The delay follows NextDC’s postponement of a Melbourne expansion over energy supply and Goodman’s withdrawal of a Sydney project amid resident opposition
The developer of one of Australia’s largest planned data centres has abandoned its target start date after the Northern Territory’s environment regulator said it needed more time to set the project’s environmental requirements, Reuters reported in an exclusive on Sunday.
Startup Energy North had given a first power date of June 2028 for Project Ares, a 1 gigawatt gas and solar-powered data centre planned for a cattle station almost 700 km from the nearest city. In an October 7 ruling, the territory’s Environment Protection Authority suspended its seven-week deadline for deciding which hurdles the project must clear. It said it would seek advice from the federal government, which is still developing policy expectations for data centres and AI infrastructure, and gave no new timeframe.
Energy North told Reuters the 2028 date had been indicative and that it was no longer working to it. The company said it would confirm timing once the regulator set out terms for an environmental impact statement. It declined to identify its financiers.
The regulator’s ruling on the roughly 190 sq km campus, which would include gas turbines, a solar farm, an airstrip and housing for 4,300 construction workers, identified 10 potential impacts, ranging from strain on water systems to disruption of Aboriginal sacred sites. It also said it had low confidence that the proposed measures would manage significant impacts effectively.
The delay is the largest timing setback for an Australian data centre so far. It follows NextDC’s decision this month to delay a Melbourne expansion over energy supply concerns, and Goodman’s withdrawal of a Sydney project after resident opposition. One urban planner told Reuters that planning frameworks were not designed for proposals of this kind, and that community concern was increasingly affecting real projects.
The setback undercuts the Northern Territory’s pitch that its vast, sparsely populated land and abundant sunshine make it a faster route for AI investment than Australia’s cities. With the territory government reportedly in talks with 12 data centre-related projects, approval risk is becoming a central question for the sector’s growth plans.
No data centre for you!
This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at investinglive.com.