Outback AI data centre drops 2028 start as NT EPA orders EIS

At a glance

• Energy North has stopped working to a 28 June 2028 first-power date for Project Ares, its proposed 1GW off-grid AI campus in the Northern Territory.

• The Territory's environment regulator published its order for an environmental impact statement on 7 October 2026 and suspended its own deadline while it consults the Australian Government's National Environmental Protection Agency.

• The regulator described Canberra as "developing policy expectations for data centres and AI infrastructure developers" and set no new timeframe.

• The campus would run off the grid on about 3,000MWp of solar, 16GWh of batteries and up to 1,038MW of gas generation.

• Beetaloo Energy's proposed Weddell campus near Darwin also plans its own generation, under a 12-month site exclusivity granted in July 2026.

The proposed 1GW Project Ares AI data centre on a Northern Territory cattle station has dropped its June 2028 start date after the Territory's environment regulator ordered an environmental impact statement (EIS) and suspended its own deadline to seek advice from the Australian Government. Developer Energy North told Reuters, in a report published on 2 November 2026, that it is no longer working to the 28 June 2028 first-power date in its referral.

The Northern Territory Environment Protection Authority (NT EPA) has set no date to decide what the 1GW campus must clear, and that decision waits on advice from Canberra.

NT EPA ordered an environmental impact statement on 7 October 2026

The NT EPA accepted Energy North's referral on 6 July 2026 as a proponent-initiated EIS referral, according to the regulator's notice of decision. Public comment on the referral closed on 20 August 2026.

On 7 October 2026 the regulator published its decision, dated 15 September, that the project will be assessed through an EIS, with terms of reference still being finalised, according to Energy North. The same day it suspended its seven-week deadline to set what the project must clear. It said it would consult the Australian Government's National Environmental Protection Agency, noted that Canberra is "developing policy expectations for data centres and AI infrastructure developers", and gave no new timeframe.

The NT EPA identified 10 environmental factors the project could significantly affect, including strain on water systems and knowledge gaps on potential impacts to Aboriginal sacred sites, and recorded a "low level of confidence" in the proposed measures to manage them, Reuters reported. Energy North vice president of project development Daniel Hunter told Reuters the June 2028 date "was an indicative schedule at the time of lodgement". Hunter declined to name the project's financiers; Energy North says it has finance lined up. "Our antiquated planning frameworks weren't designed for proposals like this," Adam Beck, an urban planner who has worked on environmental impact assessments and advised governments, told Reuters.

The Australian Government's five expectations and Project Ares

The Department of Industry, Science and Resources published its expectations of data centres and AI infrastructure developers on 23 March 2026. The document says energy-intensive proposals "not closely aligned with the expectations will not be prioritised by Commonwealth regulatory assessments". It also says the government will work with states and territories to implement the expectations "in their processes", particularly through the Energy and Climate Change Ministerial Council of Australian Government, state and territory energy and climate ministers.

Tasmania published a draft statement of expectations of its own in September 2026, asking data centres to fund new generation. Four of the five expectations apply to a campus developer, and Energy North's referral addresses each of those areas. The fifth covers research access to compute from hyperscalers and neoclouds.

Source: Department of Industry, Science and Resources, 23 March 2026; NT EPA referral notice, 8 July 2026; Energy North referral report; Energy North.

The site is on Murranji Station in the Barkly region, about 683km south of Darwin. The data centre buildings would cover about 90 hectares inside a 19,150-hectare disturbance envelope, Energy Storage News reported. Energy North plans 1GW of IT capacity in two phases of about 500MW and says it holds Commonwealth Major Project Status.

NEXTDC and Goodman projects have also shifted since September

Project Ares joins NEXTDC's M3 and Goodman's Project Mars among the large Australian data centre projects to change course since late September 2026. NEXTDC cut its FY27 guidance on 21 October 2026 after distributor Jemena paused grid works, which pushed M3 Melbourne's next power increase into FY28. Goodman withdrew its A$1.2 billion Project Mars proposal at Lane Cove on 28 September 2026.

Goodman cited a changed policy environment and community views. Separately, Queensland has announced plans to move data centre approvals from councils to the state, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's AI plan promised faster data centre approvals in July 2026.

Project Ares avoids the wait for a grid connection by generating its own power. Its timeline now depends on the Australian Government's advice and on an EIS covering that generation, its groundwater supply and its construction camp. It joins several large campuses in Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory with no published opening date.

Beetaloo Energy plans a second self-powered campus near Darwin

ASX-listed Beetaloo Energy is planning a separate campus with up to 2GW of on-site gas-fired generation at Weddell, about 30km south of Darwin, through its subsidiary Beetaloo Digital. The NT Government granted it a 12-month exclusive commitment over 185 hectares in July 2026, and the company has said full build-out could attract up to A$40 billion in private investment, according to the Territory Coordinator. A Weddell referral would go to the same regulator now seeking the Australian Government's advice on Project Ares.

What to watch

• The National Environmental Protection Agency's advice. The NT EPA has not said when it expects it.

• The Energy and Climate Change Ministerial Council. It is the forum Canberra named for building the expectations into state and territory processes.

• Energy North's revised schedule. The company has said it will confirm timing once the EIS terms are set.

• Beetaloo Digital's Weddell consortium. The company is assembling data centre, power generation and pipeline partners, with Halliburton signed to a non-binding memorandum of understanding.