GreenSquareDC plans 94MW Norwest data centre expansion by 2028

At a glance

• GreenSquareDC plans to have the full 94MW of its SYD1 Stage 2 expansion at Norwest online by November 2028, with construction from early 2027.

• GreenSquareDC trimmed Stage 2 to 94MW of IT load, from 96MW, in its response to submissions dated 27 October 2026.

• Stage 2 is designed to the August 2026 NSW Data Centre Guidelines, with a modelled PUE of 1.261 and a water use target 82 per cent below the guidelines' benchmark.

• None of the eight agency letters on the planning portal formally objects to the expansion.

• The NSW planning department is now assessing the application, SSD-81928961.

GreenSquareDC plans to have the full 94MW of its SYD1 Stage 2 expansion at Norwest, in north-west Sydney, online by November 2028. It gave the date in its response to submissions on the NSW Planning Portal, dated 27 October 2026. The NSW planning department is now assessing the application.

Stage 2 would add 94MW of IT load beside the 15MW first stage that opened on 19 October, more than six times its size. IT load is the power the computing equipment itself draws, before cooling and other building systems. The NSW Investment Delivery Authority endorsed an 80MW second stage for support in March 2026.

A four-storey data centre joins the 1995 building at Norwest

SYD1 sits on a site of about 5.2 hectares at 3 Brookhollow Avenue, Norwest, according to the environmental impact statement (EIS). The site has held a data centre since 1995. The original 4MW building, run by IBM and later Kyndryl, has been redeveloped as SYD1's 15MW first stage.

Stage 2 is a single four-storey data centre made up of three connected buildings, labelled B, C and D, joined to the first stage. Each building has its own plant, so the expansion can be delivered in steps. The Hills Local Planning Panel approved a separate application in July 2026 for an on-site substation, fed by a 132kV line from a nearby Endeavour Energy substation, to serve both stages.

The NSW Government assesses Stage 2 because data centres above 15MW are state significant development under the state's planning rules. The EIS, at 96MW of IT load, was on public exhibition from 14 July to 10 August 2026. The applicant is Project Garden 1 Pty Ltd as trustee for the Norwest Property Trust, and GreenSquareDC operates the campus, according to the planning documents. GreenSquareDC is backed by programs managed by Swiss investment firm Partners Group.

Stage 2 sits on the Sydney data centre map as GreenSquareDC SYD1 Stage 2, among the data centres in Western Sydney.

GreenSquareDC plans the full 94MW online by November 2028

According to GreenSquareDC's greenhouse gas assessment, the three building shells are "planned for construction during early 2027 till 2028". It puts "the full 94 MW capacity" online by November 2028, with full operations from 2029.

The response report puts the investment at "approximately $1.2 billion" in digital infrastructure. The first stage's 15MW is contracted to Sharon AI under a 10-year agreement. Sharon AI runs NVIDIA GPU clusters in Sydney and Melbourne.

GreenSquare rose three places to sixth in our October 2026 Power Rankings, from ninth in June. The rankings say it could move up again if Stage 2 is approved.

The redesign trims generators and one data hall level

GreenSquareDC refined the design after the exhibition, in response to points raised about the building's visual prominence, bulk and scale, according to the response report. The report lists the changes against the EIS.

Source: GreenSquareDC EIS (ESD assessment and back-up power report) and response to submissions (RtS report and greenhouse gas assessment), SSD-81928961, NSW Planning Portal, read 2 November 2026.

One data hall level and the lower plenum level come out of Building D, and two rooftop chillers are dropped. The facades get new materials, colours and cladding, with more windows facing Norwest Boulevard. Acoustic screens on the facade and baffles on the roof manage noise. The maximum height rises by 0.76m, to 40.15m.

Stage 2 targets the NSW guidelines' efficiency pathway

The response report says the design adopts the pathway in the August 2026 NSW Data Centre Guidelines of a PUE of 1.3 or less and a water usage effectiveness of 0.44 litres per kilowatt-hour or less. PUE, or power usage effectiveness, is the building's total power divided by the power the computing equipment uses. A lower figure means less power goes to cooling and other systems.

The design target of a PUE of 1.3 or less gives "an approximately 13% reduction in operational energy consumption" against a market benchmark PUE of 1.52, according to the report. The company's modelled annual average PUE is 1.261. It targets a water usage effectiveness of 0.08 litres per kilowatt-hour, "an approximately 82% reduction against the 0.44 L/kWh benchmark".

Cooling is "predominantly dry", with water-assisted cooling only in peak heat. Sydney Water and GreenSquareDC have a planning agreement to work out how the site will be serviced, and Sydney Water expects that assessment "is likely to conclude in Q1 2027".

Transport and fire agencies ask for traffic and fire plans

The planning department sought advice on the EIS from state agencies, Endeavour Energy and The Hills Shire Council. Several recommend conditions, which are rules GreenSquareDC would have to follow if the project is approved.

Transport for NSW accepted the estimate of 24 vehicles an hour in the morning and evening peaks, and said that is not expected to affect the surrounding roads. It asks for a traffic and pedestrian plan for construction. Fire and Rescue NSW asks for a fire safety study before construction and an emergency plan before the site is commissioned. Endeavour Energy, the local electricity network, wrote that it "has no objection".

The Hills Shire Council recommends traffic and construction conditions. Its letter also asks for design changes to reduce the building's bulk, the points the facade changes respond to.

What to watch

The planning department's assessment. The department's recommendation and the determination are the next two stages on the planning portal.

Sydney Water's servicing study. Sydney Water expects its assessment under the planning agreement to conclude in the first quarter of 2027.

Construction from early 2027. GreenSquareDC plans to start building Stage 2 in early 2027.