At a glance
- Singapore developer Zerra DC filed a development application with Western Downs Regional Council on 17 August 2026 for a 1.44GW campus at Kogan, in southern Queensland.
- The plan is four buildings of 360MW on 725.5 hectares, built in four stages over four to six years.
- The economic assessment puts the construction cost at A$14.5bn excluding GST. The ABC puts the project at A$31.9bn at full build-out.
- The buildings would be air-cooled, with a one-off 26.9 megalitre fill for each at commissioning and no draw on town water.
- The ABC reports Queensland wants data centres under rules the state has twice used to void applications that were already filed and awaiting a decision.
Zerra files 1.44GW at Kogan, 37km from Dalby
Zerra DC, a Singapore developer owned by the investment manager AGP, filed a development application with Western Downs Regional Council on 17 August 2026 for a project called the Western Downs Digital Park. The site is 725.5 hectares on Dalby-Kogan Road at Kogan, about 37km north west of Dalby. The council reference is 030.2026.00000513.001 and the applicant is project company WDDP Pty Ltd. As at 26 August 2026 the council had not decided it. W.Media, the ABC and Data Center Dynamics each reported the contents of the application on 24 August 2026.
The application asks for a change of land use covering research and technology industry, workforce accommodation and a concrete batching plant. Zerra plans four buildings of 360MW each, about 195,000 square metres of floorspace, and a temporary village for up to 1,500 construction workers. The campus would be built in four stages over four to six years.
Zerra filed its other Australian application, on the former Ford plant at Campbellfield in Melbourne, in April 2026.
Braemar substation stands 600 metres from the site
The Braemar transmission substation stands about 600 metres south of the site, alongside 275kV and 330kV lines. The Braemar, Braemar 2, Darling Downs and Daandine gas-fired power stations are all within a few kilometres.
The planning scheme covers four buildings and 1.44GW. An HDR infrastructure report in the same application sets out an electrical design for six.
| Item | Figure reported | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Capacity in the planning scheme | 1.44GW across four 360MW buildings | W.Media |
| Capacity the electrical design allows for | Six 360MW buildings, 2.16GW of IT load, 3.24GVA of connection | W.Media, citing the HDR infrastructure report |
| Construction cost | A$14.5bn excluding GST, about A$16bn including GST | W.Media, citing the economic assessment |
| Project value | A$31.9bn, described as the value at full build-out | ABC News and Data Center Dynamics |
Source: W.Media, ABC News and Data Center Dynamics, 24 August 2026. The 3.24GVA figure sizes the electrical connection; the 2.16GW figure is the power reaching the servers.
The application describes the Western Downs Digital Park as a nationally significant project that would establish Australia's largest data centre campus. The ABC described it as the largest facility of its kind in Australia.
Air cooling and a one-off 26.9 megalitre fill
The buildings would be air-cooled. Data Center Dynamics quotes the documents saying they will use "100 percent air-cooled technology, removing the need for water-based evaporative cooling". The application puts 26.9 megalitres for each building as a one-off filling and flushing of a closed cooling loop at commissioning.
Construction is the heavier draw. The infrastructure assessment puts peak demand at about 322 kilolitres a day, with a further 200 kilolitres for dust suppression and construction. The ABC reports the two combined as 522 kilolitres. The application lists coal seam gas water, rainwater harvesting, delivered water, recycled wastewater and on-site surface water as its sources, rather than town supply.
The rules Queensland is proposing for data centres
Wind, solar and battery projects in Queensland already run a community study and sign an agreement with the local council before they can apply for planning approval. The ABC reported on 24 August 2026 that under Queensland's proposal, "data centres would be required to provide a social impact assessment and a community benefit agreement with the relevant local council before lodging a development application". The ABC describes it as a framework Premier David Crisafulli's government would develop. Canberra will legislate energy rules over Queensland's objection on a separate track, and has been weighing a mandatory community payment from data centre operators on another.
Queensland has brought a project type under those rules twice. Solar and wind went in on 18 July 2025, batteries on 12 December 2025. Each time, the change reached applications that were already filed. A development application already made and not yet decided "is taken not to be a properly made application, and is taken not to have been accepted".
| Development | Prescribed from | Applications already filed and undecided |
|---|---|---|
| Wind farms, any size | 18 July 2025 | Voided, section 51H |
| Solar farms, 1MW or more | 18 July 2025 | Voided, section 51H |
| Battery storage, 50MW or more | 12 December 2025 | Voided, section 51IA |
Source: Planning Regulation 2017, sections 51F, 51H and 51IA. A voided application has to be filed again with the study and the agreement attached.
Zerra filed on 17 August 2026 and the council has not decided it. Queensland has published no draft of a data centre rule. An applicant can also ask to be let off both documents. Under section 106ZE of the Planning Act 2016, the head of the state planning department can give a notice saying the study, the agreement, or both, are not required. The department has 30 business days to answer.
What to watch
The regulation. Prescribing data centres takes an amendment signed by the Governor in Council, in the form Queensland used for batteries in December 2025.
The council decision. Western Downs Regional Council was still assessing application 030.2026.00000513.001 as at 26 August 2026.
National cabinet. Federal energy and water rules for large data centres are before national cabinet on 26 August 2026. Energy Minister Chris Bowen said on 23 August 2026 that Canberra will legislate them without Queensland: "The Queensland government's made their views pretty clear; we disagree with them, and we're proceeding without them."
The rate card. Western Downs Regional Council prices community benefit at A$850 per megawatt for solar and A$1,050 per megawatt for wind. Every rate it publishes covers generation or storage.
The sector's case. The Queensland Data Centres Council launched in July 2026 in a state that has yet to write a data centre policy. Queensland's operating and certified facilities are listed in the Australia Data Centre Index.