At a glance
AI stocks fell and floats were paused in mid-October 2026, including AirTrunk's Singapore REIT. Firmus withdrew its ASX float on 9 October.
Six investment firms raised about US$64 billion (A$92 billion) for power and data centres in the 13 weeks to 19 October.
Funds run by four of them back Australian platforms holding more than 750MW of data centres and about 1.9GW of power, by Certified Strategic's count.
STACK's Asia-Pacific data centres, including Sydney and Melbourne, were reported at more than US$30 billion in May and up to US$25 billion in September.
Most capital for the region sits in separate Asia-Pacific funds, led by KKR's US$6.6 billion first close in September.
Blackstone closed its latest energy fund at its US$8.7 billion hard cap on 19 October, the day after Reuters reported that a selloff in AI stocks had pushed data centre companies to pause share sales, among them Blackstone-backed AirTrunk.
The close capped 13 weeks in which six private investment firms raised about US$64 billion (A$92 billion) for funds that buy power generation, grids, storage and data centres. Every fund came in larger than the firm's previous one. Funds run by four of the six firms back Australian platforms with more than 750MW of data centre capacity and about 1.9GW of power generation and storage, according to company figures compiled by Certified Strategic.
Sentiment has turned on AI shares, but pension funds, sovereign wealth funds and insurers are still committing to the private funds behind AirTrunk, GreenSquare and Australian power projects.
AirTrunk and Firmus stepped back from public markets
AI-related stocks weakened, CoreWeave's debt fell toward distressed levels and listings were pulled or paused, including AirTrunk's planned Singapore REIT and SoftBank-backed SB Energy, Reuters reported on 18 October. Benchmark 10-year US Treasury yields posted their sharpest quarterly rise this century in September, and bankers told Reuters investors are testing whether projected revenue can carry growing debt.
AirTrunk now aims to list the US$1.5 billion REIT by early 2027 and is nearing a sale of its Johor data centre to investors including Malaysian pension fund KWAP, at a valuation of about US$2 billion, Reuters reported. Firmus withdrew its ASX float on 9 October, citing market volatility, and said it will now pursue capital from the private markets.
Six private funds raised US$64bn in 13 weeks
KKR, Partners Group, Blackstone, Energy Capital Partners and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) announced final closes between 20 July and 19 October, and Bloomberg reported on 30 September that TPG had raised about US$10 billion. The firms name pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurers and family offices among their investors.
KKR's US$19.2 billion Global Infrastructure Investors V is the largest infrastructure fund the firm has raised. Energy Capital Partners raised US$8.1 billion against a US$5 billion target. Blackstone's fund was significantly oversubscribed. Partners Group's total includes co-investment capital, and CIP's includes associated vehicles.
The first investments the firms have named are power stations, transmission lines, batteries, grid and cooling equipment, fibre networks and data centres.
Fund | Size | Focus and first deals |
|---|---|---|
US$19.2bn | North America and Western Europe; power, fibre and two data centre platforms | |
Over US$15bn | Global; mobile power for data centres, Singapore data centres, German batteries | |
TPG Rise Climate II | About US$10bn | Global; clean energy, electric transport, materials |
US$8.7bn | Mainly North America; new power plants, transmission lines, data centre cooling parts | |
US$8.1bn | Power, renewables and storage; nuclear services, LNG, energy distribution | |
About US$3bn | 15 middle-income markets; batteries and solar |
Source: KKR, Partners Group, Blackstone, Bridgepoint and CIP announcements; Bloomberg for TPG; IPE Real Assets for Blackstone's regional split.
Four of the firms back 750MW of Australian data centres and 1.9GW of power
The new funds invest mainly outside Australia. Blackstone, Partners Group, KKR and CIP back their Australian platforms through earlier funds and strategies.
Platform and backer | Australian capacity | Status |
|---|---|---|
AirTrunk (Blackstone, CPP Investments) | 755MW+ data centres | AirTrunk's published Australian figure, no basis stated |
GreenSquare (Partners Group programs) | 15MW data centre | GreenSquareDC SYD1 stage 1 operating from 19 October 2026; 80MW stage two and 240MW Spotswood plan proposed |
Zenith Energy (KKR) | 710MW power | Off-grid power for mines, contracted across about 15 sites, at announcement in June 2025 |
HMC Capital energy platform (KKR up to A$603m) | 652MW power | Installed wind, solar and batteries, with a 5.7GW pipeline |
Gawara Baya (CIP) | 512MW power | 408MW wind and 104MW battery near Ingham, financial close 31 August 2026 |
Source: AirTrunk, GreenSquare, KKR, HMC Capital ASX announcement 26 June 2026, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners. Capacity bases differ by platform.
GreenSquare opened the first stage of SYD1 at Norwest on 19 October, the day Blackstone closed its fund, with Sharon AI as its first customer. KKR's HMC commitment received ACCC and FIRB clearance in June. CIP reached financial close on Gawara Baya on 31 August with an A$1.7 billion bank facility and offtake from Stanwell and SmartestEnergy.
IFM is closing in on STACK's Asia-Pacific data centres
Blue Owl's STACK Infrastructure was weighing a sale of more than US$30 billion of its Asia-Pacific operations, including its Sydney and Melbourne data centres, Bloomberg reported in May. The BlackRock-backed AI Infrastructure Partnership and IFM Investors, owned by Australian industry superannuation funds, were closing in on a deal worth up to US$25 billion, Bloomberg reported on 24 September. KKR and Brookfield were among the possible bidders Bloomberg named in June, alongside the AI Infrastructure Partnership. IFM's bid follows a wider move by Australian superannuation funds into data centres.
Asian data centre mergers and acquisitions reached US$21.3 billion in 2026 by mid-October, more than double the US$10 billion recorded in all of 2025, according to Dealogic figures cited by Reuters. Investors are likely to separate established wholesale operators with long-term contracts from higher-risk neoclouds and AI campus builders, John Dinsdale, chief analyst at TechInsights, told Reuters.
KKR and Brookfield are raising Asia-Pacific infrastructure funds
KKR's Asia Pacific Infrastructure Investors III, whose predecessor bought Zenith, held a US$6.6 billion first close in September, a regional record according to Infrastructure Investor, which reported KKR had committed most of it. Brookfield is raising US$30 billion for its sixth flagship infrastructure fund and plans to put 20 to 30 per cent into Asia-Pacific, according to New Mexico State Investment Council documents reported by IPE Real Assets. That range implies US$6 billion to US$9 billion for the region.
What to watch
DayOne's float. Singapore-based DayOne is expected to list as soon as November seeking up to US$5 billion, Reuters reported. It is the next test of public appetite for data centre platforms.
KKR's Asia-Pacific final close. Infrastructure Investor expects the fund to finish "substantially higher" than its US$6.6 billion first close.
Brookfield's first close. The size of the first close on its US$30 billion fund will indicate how much of its Asia-Pacific share is available to invest.
STACK's agreement. A signed deal between Blue Owl and the AI Infrastructure Partnership and IFM consortium will show which assets are included and at what price.