A data center campus is being planned outside Melbourne, Australia.

“We have received a planning permit application for a proposed data center at 585 Berwick-Cranbourne Road, Clyde North,” the City of Casey announced this week. “This is the first planning permit application of this kind received by the City of Casey.”

Clyde North is a suburb in Melbourne, located within the City of Casey local government area. It is some 53km (32.9 miles) southeast of central Melbourne.

Full details of the planned campus have not been shared, but up to AU$1.1 billion (US$769m) could be invested in the project, according to the application. The proposals have received six objections on the Casey planning portal at the time of writing.

The city noted that the site is located in the Urban Growth Zone, an area identified by the Victorian Government for future growth and development.

City planning officers are currently reviewing the information provided in the application, and we have requested additional information.

The site, on the corner of Thompsons Road and Berwick-Cranbourne Road, covers about 53.6 hectares.

City of Casey Mayor, Cr Stefan Koomen, said: “At this stage, Councilors have not been asked to make a decision on the application, and it would be inappropriate to form a view before all relevant information has been received. We are committed to ensuring a thorough, fair and transparent process that considers the impacts of this significant proposal and the best interests of our community.”

Real estate firm Galileo Group acquired the land for AU$130m (US$90.89m) in November 2022. The site is still listed on the company's website.

More data centers planned around Melbourne

Recent weeks have seen several other data center applications in and around Melbourne, already Australia’s second major data center hub behind Sydney.

An application for a data center at 45 Donnybrook Road in Mickleham was filed earlier this month with Victoria’s Department of Transport and Planning. Up to seven buildings are planned on the site, located within the 67-hectare Fusion Business Park, owned by real estate firm McMullin.

The land, some 35km (22 miles) north of central Melbourne, is close to the Kalkallo Zone Substation. The applicant hasn’t been shared, but a PWC post suggests the site may be being developed by AirTrunk, while DataCenterMap lists the site as a planned Amazon campus.

July also saw Australian real estate firm Goodman file to develop three two-story data center buildings at 433 Mount Atkinson Road in Truganina, some 30km (19 miles) west of Melbourne. Full details of the project haven’t been shared. The land was previously owned by real estate firm Logos (now owned by ESR).