Japanese conglomerate Mitsui and investment firm Fidelity have formed a joint venture to build hyperscale data centers in Japan.
The new joint venture will be owned 50:50, and Fidelity-owned Colt Data Centre Services will manage the new facilities. Colt DCS currently has 50MW of existing capacity in Japan, which will almost triple to 140MW following the joint venture across Tokyo and Osaka.
“Japan remains a strategic country of focus for our regional expansion, where the demand for large-scale data center capacity outstrips supply,” said Niclas Sanfridsson, CEO of Colt DCS “Whilst Colt DCS already has a solid reputation in the market for working with the world’s largest hyperscale cloud providers and multi-national companies, the partnership with Mitsui and its strategic alliances will provide new opportunities for us to further penetrate the domestic enterprise sector and accelerate our land banking strategy.”
Under the agreement, Colt will provide design, development, operations and customer service management for the venture. Mitsui & Co Realty Management Ltd., a private real estate fund management subsidiary of Mitsui will serve as the asset manager and cover structuring, financing, land sourcing, development support and marketing.
“Data centers play a critical role in the digital transformation of businesses across the globe, and the demand for high-quality and environmentally conscious hyperscale data centers is huge,” added Shinsuke Waka, GM of Financial Business Division, from Mitsui & Co. “Through the management of the Mitsui Fund and our joint venture, Mitsui will utilize its unique financial and industrial capabilities to respond jointly to these needs with its global prestigious partners.”
As well as breaking the news of the Mitsui-Fidelity JV, yesterday Nikkei reported that Mitsui & Co. is to invest a total of 300 billion yen ($2.7 billion) by 2026 in the development of new data centers and the acquisition of existing facilities.
The publication reports the trading house has joined forces with overseas investors to build three large facilities in three locations, including Kyoto and Chiba by 2026 at a cost of 150 billion yen ($1.35 billion). It also said Mitsui is to partner with the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board to launch an investment fund focused on data center construction.
